The effect of cortisone therapy on the incidence of rheumatic heart disease.

Abstract

THE purpose of this report is to attempt to assess the effect of cortisone in rheumatic heart disease by consideration of a group of 100 patients treated with cortisone and, for purposes of comparison, a group of 80 patients cared for under similar circumstances, before cortisone was utilized in this hospital. Since the original contribution of Hench and his co-workers1 pointed the way to the use of cortisone in the treatment of rheumatic fever, there has been a constantly glowing list of valuable communications reporting experience with series of patients of variable size and from slightly different points of view. . . .