Incidence of Group A Strep Pharyngitis in School Children in Fiji

The purpose of this study is to find out how often group A Streptococcus (GAS) occurs in school-age children of Central Fiji. This bacterium often causes pharyngitis (sore throat) and can also cause pyoderma (skin infection) or scabies. Approximately 1000 children ages 5-14 years will be enrolled from 4 primary schools in Central Fiji. These children will have throat swabs performed to determine how commonly GAS occurs. Over the next 10 months, children in this group who complain of sore throat will be examined and have throat swabs to determine if GAS is the cause. A subset of 600 children will be examined for pyoderma and scabies and have throat swabs every 2 months during the 10 month study. In addition, a small amount of blood will be drawn at 0, 6, and 10 months to determine the level of antibodies to Streptococcus.