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Rheumatic fever occurs in about 325,000 children each year and about 33.4 million people currently have rheumatic heart disease. [ 1 ] [ 7 ] Those who develop RF are most often between the ages of 5 and 14, [ 1 ] with 20% of first-time attacks occurring in adults. [ 8 ]
Rheumatic fever & heart disease. Author: Tanner Marshall, MS Editor: Rishi Desai, MD, MPH, Tanner Marshall, MS “Rheumatism” is used to describe inflammation in the joints, muscles, and the fibrous tissue, so rheumatic fever is a type of inflammatory disease that can damage the heart tissue, and lead to rheumatic heart disease.
Acute rheumatic fever can be differentiated by a migratory pattern of joint involvement and evidence of antecedent streptococcal infection. Bacterial arthritis (such as by Streptococcus ) is usually asymmetric, while RA usually involves both sides of the body symmetrically.
Rheumatism [2] / ˈ r uː m ə t ɪ z əm / or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. [3] Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including arthritis and "non-articular rheumatism", also known as "regional pain syndrome" or "soft tissue rheumatism".
Penicillin prophylaxis is essential to treat cardiac features of rheumatic fever, even if subclinical (American Heart Association guideline). [26] If there are not features to warrant a diagnosis of rheumatic fever, it is arguable whether cardiac risk justifies prophylaxis or not; however, it is likely to reduce recurrence.
Rheumatology covers more than 100 different complex diseases, collectively known as rheumatic diseases, which includes many forms of arthritis as well as lupus and Sjögren's syndrome. [1] Doctors who have undergone formal training in rheumatology are called rheumatologists .
Chronic rheumatic heart disease mostly affects the mitral valve, which can become thickened with calcification of the leaflets, often causing fusion of the commissures and chordae tendineae. Other findings of ARF include erythema marginatum (usually over the spine or other bony areas) and a red expanding rash on the trunk and extremities that ...
Valvular heart disease resulting from rheumatic fever is referred to as rheumatic heart disease. Acute rheumatic fever, which frequently manifests with carditis and valvulitis, [ 20 ] is a late sequela of Group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus infection in the throat, often lagging the initial infection by weeks to months. [ 21 ]