Six cases of a rare but invasive infection has been identified within the last six weeks in the west of Ireland.
The unusual cluster of cases of invasive Group A streptococcus (GAS) has occurred in the Health Service Executive (HSE) Western Area - formerly the Western Health Board - which includes counties Galway, Mayo and Roscommon.
Of the six people affected, two developed a severe form of invasive GAS called necrotising fasciitis, in which large areas of soft tissue under the skin are destroyed. A further two patients presented with septicaemia, a serious form of blood poisoning. The remaining cases of the infection caused joint problems and abdominal infection.
The two people with necrotising fasciitis have died, while the four more recently diagnosed patients are either stable in hospital or have been discharged home following treatment. It is understood that three of these four cases occurred in different parts of Co Galway with the other identified elsewhere in the region.
The HSE Western Area said all six cases of GAS were acquired in the community and were not in anyway linked to one another. It confirmed that laboratory results from the two patients with necrotising fasciitis found they had been infected with different sub-types of GAS, indicating no link between them.