Streptococcus pneumonia is a bacteria that can cause ear infections and meningitis. It is also the most common cause of community-acquired pneumonia in all age groups. Some people carry these bacteria in their nose and/or throat and do not get sick; however it can become invasive and cause serious illness. Symptoms usually start suddenly with a high fever, chills, muscle aches, headache, breathing difficulty and a cough. For more information, see the health unit's fact sheet on pneumococcal disease.
Simcoe Muskoka
Ontario
Technical Notes
Simcoe Muskoka
The following graph shows the number of invasive Streptococcal pneumonia cases in Simcoe Muskoka between 2002 and 2021. There have been between 27 and 76 cases of invasive Streptococcal pneumonia cases in Simcoe Muskoka every year since 2002. In 2021, 27 cases of Streptococcal pneumonia were reported in Simcoe Muskoka.
Ontario
The following graph shows the incidence rate of invasive Streptococcal pneumonia in Simcoe Muskoka and Ontario between 2002 and 2021. There is some variability in the Simcoe Muskoka rate, which means that there are multiple peaks and valleys and it is difficult to determine whether an increase is significant or whether it is within the expected range for this disease. The local increase in 2012 was investigated and no common risk factors or links were identified. In 2021, the Simcoe Muskoka incidence rate for Streptococcal pneumonia was 4.4 cases per 100,000 population and the Ontario rate was 4.3 cases per 100,000 population.
More detailed data for Ontario and each health unit can be found on Public Health Ontario’s interactive Reportable Disease Trends in Ontario tool.
Technical Notes
There are many factors that influence how many cases are reported to the health unit, as explained on the Infectious Diseases page. It is unclear to what extent the global COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the reporting and spread of other infectious diseases – counts and rates of disease since 2020 should be interpreted with caution.
Data are not shown for 2000 and 2001 due to reporting inconsistencies in those years.
Page last updated August 19, 2022