Suspected outbreak of scarlet fever

A school in the city of Alicante has given notice to the Department of Health after confirming three cases of scarlet fever among their students and suspect it might be an outbreak. The advice to other parents is to take preventative measures to stop the spread. All tissues and cloths that someone with scarlet fever has coughed or sneezed into should be washed or disposed of immediately. Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water if you have touched any of these. Avoid sharing contaminated eating utensils, cups and glasses, clothes, baths, bed linen or towels. Affected children should be kept at home until the treatment has taken effect.

Scarlet fever was one of those childhood illnesses that you did not want your son or daughter to catch because if left untreated, it can cause serious problems. Fortunately, those are rare these days because most cases are usually mild and can be treated with antibiotics.  Scarlet fever is thought by most people to be a disease of the past.