Quintessence Henderson, 5, died on March 25, 2023, of complications of pneumonia and a Strep A infection (iGAS) (Photos via Christina Hecktus).
This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Contact a qualified medical professional before engaging in any physical activity, or making any changes to your diet, medication or lifestyle.
Christina Hecktus is living every parent’s worst nightmare. Her daughter died suddenly on March 25 of complications of pneumonia and a Strep A infection (iGAS). She was only five years old.
Quintessence Henderson — Quin to her loved ones — “had a smile and a hug and a greeting for anybody,” Christina told Yahoo Canada.
“I have no words for how amazing this world would have been with her in it had she been able to be here.”
Earlier this month, Quintessence came down with a “run of the mill” cold. A few days later, she had a fever, but her parents, Christina and Kirk Henderson, were able to bring her temperature down with over-the-counter medication.
Christina Hecktus and Kirk Henderson took their 5-year-old daughter to the hospital on March 25. (Photo via Christina Hecktus).
Doctors told the Kitchener, Ont. parents their daughter likely had a “secondary cold” and the ER “may not be needed.” However, on March 25, Quintessence woke up with a raspy chest and shallow breathing, so they took her to the hospital.
‘In my brain, I’m like, we’re overreacting’
“It had never occurred to me that she was this sick,” Christina said. “I’m thinking they’re going to treat her with something for dehydration and maybe give her a puffer for her cough; nothing too serious. We’re overreacting. In my brain, I’m like, we’re overreacting.”
At the hospital, Quintessence took a turn for the worse and was diagnosed with pneumonia and sepsis. Her pediatrician gave her a 50/50 chance of survival.
Quintessence Henderson “had a smile and a hug and a greeting for anybody.” (Photo via Christina Hecktus).
“That was the first time it really sunk in that she may not make it,” Christina said.
Within 12 hours of going to the hospital, Quintessence passed away.
‘It happened so fast’
“It happened so fast,” Christina said over the phone. “We lost our little girl.”
The following day, Public Heralth Ontario reached out for contact tracing. Quintessence’s bloodwork returned positive for an invasive Strep A infection — the same bacteria that led to a Hamilton, Ont. two-year-old’s death in early March.
What is Strep A?
Group A Strep (short for Group A streptococcus) is a common bacterial infection that grows inside the nose, throat and sometimes on the skin.
Group A Strep (GAS) tends to infect the upper respiratory tract, causing strep throat and sinus infections. However, it can also cause skin and soft tissue infections such as impetigo and cellulitis or scarlet fever.
What is invasive Group A streptococcus?
Group A Strep infections typically result in strep throat. GAS are called “non-invasive” because the infection is on the parts of the body that are exposed to the outside world, like the throat or skin, according to the government of Canada.
“Although Group A Strep can be easily treated with antibiotics, infections can become very dangerous if they become ‘invasive,'” says Irene Martin, the head of the Streptococcus and STI Unit at the Public Health Agency of Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory.
“Group A Strep becomes invasive when it infects blood or internal body tissues, and it can cause illnesses such as meningitis or flesh-eating disease.”
Bloodwork later showed that Quintessence had invasive Group A streptococcal, an infection that killed at least three children in Canada late last year.
How does Strep A spread?
Strep A is highly contagious and easily spreads from person to person. GAS bacteria can spread through close contact with someone with strep, sharing food and drinks, or breathing in their respiratory droplets. As the bacteria transmits via person-to-person contact, it easily spreads among family or household members.
Strep throat is most common in children ages five to 15; however, anyone can get it.
What are symptoms of Strep A?
While symptoms vary depending on the type of infection, Health Canada says the main signs of non-invasive Group A streptococcus (GAS) include fever, a sore throat and mild skin conditions such as a rash, sores, bumps and blisters.
Invasive infections (iGAS) can include severe symptoms like trouble breathing (pneumonia), a breakdown of the skin and connective tissues (necrotizing fasciitis), a fever, a drop in blood pressure, vomiting and diarrhea (toxic shock syndrome).
Symptoms of GAS may include a fever, sore throat, and mild skin conditions such as a rash, sores, bumps and blisters (Getty).
Strep A cases rising in Canada
Some Canadian officials reported an uptick in invasive Group A streptococcus infections in Dec. 2022, echoing rising case numbers in the U.S. and Europe.
According to a Public Health Ontario report, the number of iGAS infections between October and November 2022 was “higher than the number of cases reported in this age group during the same months between the 2016-17 and 2019-20 seasons.”
As of Feb. 28, 2023, the “incidence rate is higher across all age groups in the current season.”
The rise in iGAS cases is likely linked to the increase in RSV and flu viruses hitting kids, the World Health Organization said in a December 2022 news release.
‘Don’t be afraid to take your kids in’
“I want parents not to feel that their concerns are not warranted, even if it’s a cough,” Christina said. “I didn’t want to be an inconvenience and because I didn’t want to be an inconvenience and I was following the rules, my little girl isn’t here anymore.”
“Don’t be afraid to take your kids in,” she said. “Just do it. If a healthy 5-year-old can turn in 12 hours, I don’t want anyone else to go through that.”
The Canadian government says it will donate up to 200,000 vaccine doses to fight the mpox outbreak in Congo and other African countries.
It says the donated doses of Imvamune will come from Canada’s existing supply and will not affect the country’s preparedness for mpox cases in this country.
Minister of Health Mark Holland says the donation “will help to protect those in the most affected regions of Africa and will help prevent further spread of the virus.”
Dr. Madhukar Pai, Canada research chair in epidemiology and global health, says although the donation is welcome, it is a very small portion of the estimated 10 million vaccine doses needed to control the outbreak.
Vaccine donations from wealthier countries have only recently started arriving in Africa, almost a month after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
A few days after the declaration in August, Global Affairs Canada announced a contribution of $1 million for mpox surveillance, diagnostic tools, research and community awareness in Africa.
On Thursday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said mpox is still on the rise and that testing rates are “insufficient” across the continent.
Jason Kindrachuk, Canada research chair in emerging viruses at the University of Manitoba, said donating vaccines, in addition to supporting surveillance and diagnostic tests, is “massively important.”
But Kindrachuk, who has worked on the ground in Congo during the epidemic, also said that the international response to the mpox outbreak is “better late than never (but) better never late.”
“It would have been fantastic for us globally to not be in this position by having provided doses a much, much longer time prior than when we are,” he said, noting that the outbreak of clade I mpox in Congo started in early 2023.
Clade II mpox, endemic in regions of West Africa, came to the world’s attention even earlier — in 2022 — as that strain of virus spread to other countries, including Canada.
Two doses are recommended for mpox vaccination, so the donation may only benefit 100,000 people, Pai said.
Pai questioned whether Canada is contributing enough, as the federal government hasn’t said what percentage of its mpox vaccine stockpile it is donating.
“Small donations are simply not going to help end this crisis. We need to show greater solidarity and support,” he said in an email.
“That is the biggest lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic — our collective safety is tied with that of other nations.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.
The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.
Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.
“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”
The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.
A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.
Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.
“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.
Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.
The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.
“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.
Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.
The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.
“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.
Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.
A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
