Scarlet fever

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Normal lungs and alveoli

Signs of scarlet fever

Scarlatina

The treatment of scarlet fever is the same as the treatment of strep throat -- antibiotic therapy to eliminate the bacteria that causes this infection from the throat. This is crucial to preventing rheumatic fever, the most feared complication of strep throat and scarlet fever.

With proper antibiotic treatment, the symptoms of scarlet fever should resolve quickly (though the rash can last for up to 2-3 weeks before it is fully resolved).

Complications are rare with proper treatment. These can include:

• Acute rheumatic fever
• Ear infection (otitis media)
• Adenitis or abscess
• Pneumonia
• Sinusitis
• Meningitis
• Bone or joint problems (osteomyelitis or arthritis)
• Liver damage (hepatitis)
• Kidney damage (glomerulonephritis)

Call your health care provider if symptoms of scarlet fever develop, if symptoms do not subside 24 hours after beginning antibiotic treatment, or if new symptoms develop.

Review Date: 10/27/2005
Reviewed By: Daniel Rauch, MD, FAAP, Director, Pediatric Hospitalist Program, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, NYU School of Medicine, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.