Potential preventability of first attacks of acute rheumatic fever in children.

Abstract

The authors studied 110 consecutive cases of children hospitalized for a first attack of rheumatic fever. In each case a judgment was made as to the adequacy of the preceding treatment in the light of recommendations made by the American Heart Association. In 94 of the 110 cases there had been an infection within 5 weeks before the onset of rheumatic fever. The patient had been seen by a physician in 62 cases, throat cultures had been made in 17, and antibiotics had been given in 50. In only 10 patients was the preceding therapy deemed adequate. Residual cardiac involvement was noted in 54 of the 110 at the time of discharge from the hospital. It was estimated that about 84% of these cases of rheumatic fever had been preventable.