How is rheumatic fever treated?

Rheumatic fever (also called rheumatic heart disease) is a condition in which the heart valves are damaged by substances (antibodies) that the body produces to fight streptococcal (strep) infection. Rheumatic heart disease affects only a small percentage of those infected with strep throat or other strep infections, and because of the availability of medicines to treat strep infections, rheumatic fever is no longer common in the United States.

Treatments for rheumatic heart disease include antibiotics (penicillin) to stop the strep infection. They also include taking preventive doses of antibiotics to stop future strep infections before they begin. If a child is diagnosed with rheumatic fever, he or she will need to take antibiotics (either by mouth every day or by shot once a month) until adulthood to prevent future infections. Children can become very sick with subsequent infections.

If rheumatic fever leads to cardiac abnormalities:

• Aspirin may be given.
• Steroids may be given.
• Medications for congestive heart failure may be prescribed. Congestive heart failure is when the heart cannot pump enough blood to the body.

If there is significant damage to the heart valve, surgical repair or replacement with a prosthetic (artificial) heart valve may be recommended. Some cases of narrowing of the mitral valve can be treated by stretching the valve with a balloon delivered using a catheter (balloon valvuloplasty).