Rheumatic Fever: A High-Risk Health Hazard

Introduction

Rheumatic fever is an inflammatory disease that affects body parts like the brain, skin, joints and the heart. This disease develops after two to three weeks with a streptococcal throat infection. This disease includes symptoms like fever and multiple painful joints, involuntary muscle movements and also includes a non-itchy rash which is known as erythema marginatum. 

In half of the cases, this disease involves the heart. When the damage occurs to the heart valves then it is known as rheumatic heart disease (RHD). This condition usually occurs after repeated attacks and in some cases, it can also occur after one attack. 

This can damage the heart valves and cause health issues like heart failure, fibrillation and infection of the heart valves. 

According to the research done on rheumatic fever, it is found that this disease mostly occurs in children of the age group from 5 to 15 years old. This disease can also develop in adults. The occurrence of rheumatic fever is very rare in developed nations like the United States. But it is very common in many developing nations.

This disease usually occurs in some common places like sub-Saharan Africa, South Central Asia and in certain areas of Australia and New Zealand. It is common knowledge among people that Rheumatic fever usually occurs as an inflammatory reaction to the people with Streptococcal infection but that is not completely true. This disease has a time period of 2 to 4 weeks to develop in a person.

Signs and Symptoms of Rheumatic Fever

The symptoms of this disease vary according to the person. The symptoms and signs can change during the course of this disease. The very common signs and symptoms of rheumatic fever are the inflammation of the heart, skin, joints or central nervous system. The following are a list of signs and symptoms of this disease.

1. Red, hot swollen joints

2. The painful and tender feeling usually around the knees, ankles, wrists and elbows

3. Fever and weakness

4. The migration of pain from one joint to another

5. The occurrence of small and painless bumps under the skin

6. Fatigue

7. Heart murmur

8. Chest pain

9. The occurrence of unusual behaviour like inappropriate laughing, crying, etc and that includes Sydenham chorea

10. The development of ragged edge with a flat painless rash

11. Uncontrollable, jerky body movements usually occurring in the hand, feet and face. 

There are a wide variety of symptoms associated with rheumatic fever. These are some guidelines for the children who are facing this disease and may require immediate care.

• For babies of 6 weeks to 6 months old: if the baby has a temperature of 101°F (38.3°C) or higher.

• For children of any age: If the child has a fever that lasts for more than three days.

• For Newborns to 6-week old infants: If the baby has more than a 100°F (37.8°C) temperature.

Reasons Behind the Cause of Rheumatic Fever

According to research done on rheumatic fever it is found that it can occur due to throat infection which is caused by a bacteria called group A streptococcus. There are rare situations when this infection led to rheumatic fever.

The relationship between strep infection and rheumatic fever is not clear, but it seems like it could trick the immune system. The bacteria contain the same protein which can be found in certain tissues of the body.

To protect our body, our immune system attacks the tissues of the heart, joints, central nervous system and skin since they confuse them as some toxins or infectious agents in the body. As this bacteria has the same protein that is similar to those tissues of body parts.

This attack causes widespread inflammation throughout the body. There are other factors like genetics which can increase the risk. There is a high risk of getting this disease if your family members had it before.

Risk Factors of Rheumatic Fever

There are various types of risk factors associated with rheumatic fever. Those factors are mentioned below.

1. Environmental Factors

The environmental factors increase the risk of rheumatic fever since this disease is related to overcrowding, poor sanitation and other conditions. All these reasons may result in the rapid growth and transmission of this disease.

2. Family History

Family history plays a very important role in the transmission of rheumatic fever. Some people carry genes that make them more vulnerable to rheumatic fever.

3. Type of Strep Bacteria

There are various types of strep bacterias. Some of those bacteria contribute more exposure to rheumatic fever than other strains.

Complications of Rheumatic Fever

There are various types of complications that may occur due to rheumatic fever. The inflammation caused by rheumatic fever may last for a few weeks or sometimes several months. In some cases, this inflammation can lead to long term complications. Some of the heart complications resulting from this disease are mentioned below.

Aortic Regurgitation

This disease causes a leak in the aortic valve of the heart which leads to the blood to flow in the wrong direction.

Heart Muscle Damage

The inflammation caused by this disease can weaken the heart muscle and decrease the ability of the heart to pump blood effectively.

Heart Failure

This disease affects the heart's blood circulation capacity and may sometimes lead to a heart attack.

There is a risk of permanent damage to the heart with this disease. It usually affects the valve between the two left chambers of the heart but also affects the other valves too. The damage caused to the mitral valve or other valves can cause problems to the heart at a later stage.

• The problem of irregular and chaotic heartbeat (atrial fibrillation)

• Heart Failure Treatment of Rheumatic Fever The main objective of rheumatic fever treatment is to completely destroy the remaining group A streptococcal bacteria and get relief from its symptoms and also to prevent it from returning. Treatments included for rheumatic fever are mentioned below.

Anti Inflammatory Treatment

This disease can cause a lot of pain to a person. Hence the doctor will prescribe the use of pain relievers like aspirin or naproxen (Naprosyn, Anaprox DS, Naprelan) to reduce fever, inflammation and pain. If the symptoms get worse; or the child is not responding to the treatment of anti-inflammatory drugs, then they should immediately see a doctor.

Antibiotics

The doctor should prescribe medicines like penicillin and other antibiotics to eliminate strep bacteria. After the first phase of antibiotic treatment, the doctor will start the second phase or another course of antibiotics to prevent its recurrence. The people who suffer from heart inflammation during this disease are advised by doctors to continue preventive antibiotic treatment for 10 years or longer.

Anticonvulsant Medications

There are many health issues caused by this disease. In that case, doctors may prescribe anti-seizure medications like carbamazepine (Tegretol, Carbatrol, other) or Valproic acid (Depakene).

Conclusion

Rheumatic fever has always been a life-threatening disease for the humankind. It usually affects the major part of our body, the heart. This can even lead the person to a very critical situation.

This disease affects the valve of the heart and punctures it by which the flow of the blood gets disturbed which can cause a heart attack. Children are the major target of this disease and are very dangerous for them. 

In this article, we have written about the signs and symptoms that people can go through while facing this disease. We have also mentioned the effective way of treatment to get rid of this disease once and for all. 

Be healthy and take some immunity boosters to build up immunity levels; which are the body’s natural defence system. Maintain proper health and hygiene by using good soaps, body wash, hand wash and sanitizers to stay and protected for a long and happy life.

Author's Note

Rheumatic fever has always been a life-threatening disease for the humankind. It usually affects the major part of our body, the heart. This can even lead the person to a very critical situation.