CARRIERS OF GROUP A β-HEMOLYTIC STREPTOCOCCUS AMONG AN Adolescent POPULATION IN TEHRAN

Background– Streptococcal pharyngitis is not prevalent among individuals above 15 years of age and as a result, there is little research conducted on this age group. Hence, the aim of this study was to detect the prevalence of group A β–hemolytic Streptococcus (GABHS) among healthy individuals between 15 to 18 years of age.Methods– Using cluster sampling methods, 546 individuals aged from 15 to 18 years were randomly selected from a population of high school students in District 3 of Education Organization (Tehran, Iran). The results of throat cultures, demographic data, contents of tonsillar enlargement, cryptic tonsillitis and the level of education of individuals’ parents were evaluated.Results– Of the total of 546 students, 49 (9%) had GABHS in their pharynxes. Seventeen (60%) of the 28 students in which asymptomatic pharyngitis and/or cryptic tonsillitis was documented had GABHS in their pharynxes. Tonsillar enlargement was not a significant risk factor for being a carrier of GABHS. Lower level of parents’ education was associated with a positive rate of GABHS.Conclusion– Compared to developed countries, the higher prevalence of GABHS carriers in our study probably indicates that there is a significant number of children with untreated or partially-treated streptococcal pharyngitis. With the recent removal of legal restrictions in the prescription of injectable penicillins for children, a complete course of antibiotic treatment is highly recommended.