Strep cases spike 30 percent over pre-pandemic peak

Cases of strep surged this past winter, hitting the highest rate of infection since 2017.

According to a new analysis from Epic Research, strep throat infections followed a seasonal pattern from Jan. 2017 through Feb. 2020, increasing in September and peaking in February each year. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, cases of strep throat, like other respiratory illnesses, decreased significantly with the rise of COVID-19.

Strep cases remained low until they began to rise in Sept. 2022 and reached a peak in Feb. 2023, surging to nearly 30 percent greater than the previous peak in Feb. 2017.

Researchers also found that strep throat cases were most common in children ages 4-13, though all age groups aligned with similar trends.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, strep throat is caused by a bacteria called group A Streptococcus and is spread through respiratory droplets and direct contact. It usually takes between two and five days for someone exposed to strep to become ill with the infection.