An outbreak of skin sepsis in abattoir workers caused by an 'unusual' strain of Streptococcus pyogenes

An outbreak of indolent skin infections due to an 'unusual' serological typ e of Streptococcus pyogenes that lasted for 3 months and affected eight wor kers in an abattoir is described. The group A streptococcal (GAS) isolates were serotyped as M-type 59; however, they possessed a T-protein pattern (T 5/27/44) that is not commonly associated with M-type 59, Further genotypic characterisation studies revealed that ail eight isolates were indistinguis hable by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and possessed the emm gene encoding for the M-type 59, Once identified, and after a combination of pe nicillin treatment, exclusion of workers with lesions and reinforcement of standard hygiene precautions, no further cases developed. Although common i n the 1970s and 1980s, streptococcal infections in this situation are now r eported infrequently. This report serves to highlight the issues surroundin g working practices in abattoirs.