Rheumatic fever

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Acute rheumatic fever

The management of acute rheumatic fever is geared towards the reduction of inflammation with anti-inflammatory medications such as aspirin or corticosteroids. Individuals with positive cultures for strep throat should also be treated with antibiotics. Another important cornerstone in treating rheumatic fever includes the continuous use of low dose antibiotics (such as penicillin, sulfadiazine, or erythromycin) to prevent recurrence.

The recurrence of rheumatic fever is relatively common in the absence of maintenance of low dose antibiotics, especially during the first 3 - 5 years after the first episode of rheumatic fever. Heart complications may be long-term and severe, particularly if the heart valves are involved.

• Damage to heart valves (in particular, mitral stenosis and aortic stenosis)
• Endocarditis
• Heart failure
• Arrhythmias
• Pericarditis
• Sydenham's chorea

Call your health care provider if you develop symptoms of rheumatic fever. There are numerous conditions which may have similar symptoms, therefore you will require careful medical evaluation.

If you have symptoms of strep throat, notify your health care provider. You will need to be evaluated and treated if strep throat is confirmed, to decrease your risk of developing rheumatic fever.

Review Date: 06/10/2005
Reviewed By: Eleftherios Mylonakis, M.D., Division of Infectious Disease, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.