Answer
During the 1960s and 1970s, ARF nearly disappeared in the United States, although it continued unabated in developing countries. This decline in disease was largely attributed to careful disease surveillance and initiation of prompt aggressive antibiotic therapy in primary care practice. However, in 1985, several multifocal outbreaks of rheumatic fever occurred in several parts of the United States.
In contrast with earlier outbreaks in this country, most of the patients were white, middle-class children from rural and suburban communities who had good access to health care. This unexplained resurgence in acute rheumatic fever underscores the point that a great deal remains to be learned about the pathogenesis of this disease.
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Media Gallery
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Invasive soft tissue infection due to Streptococcus pyogenes. This child developed fever and soft-tissue swelling on the fifth day of a varicella-zoster infection. Leading edge aspirate of cellulitis grew S pyogenes. Although the patient responded to intravenous penicillin and clindamycin, operative débridement was necessary because of clinical suspicion of early necrotizing fasciitis.
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Streptococcus group A infections. Beta hemolysis is demonstrated on blood agar media.
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Streptococcus group A infections. M protein.
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Streptococcus group A infections. Erysipelas is a group A streptococcal infection of skin and subcutaneous tissue.
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Streptococcus group A infections. White strawberry tongue observed in streptococcal pharyngitis. Image courtesy of J. Bashera.
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Streptococcus group A infections. Streptococcal rash. Image courtesy of J. Bashera.
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Group A Streptococcus on Gram stain of blood isolated from a patient who developed toxic shock syndrome.
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Streptococcus group A infections. Necrotizing fasciitis of the left hand in a patient who had severe pain in the affected area.
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Streptococcus group A infections. Patient who had had necrotizing fasciitis of the left hand and severe pain in the affected area (from Image 8). This photo was taken at a later date, and the wound is healing. The patient required skin grafting.
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Streptococcus group A infections. Gangrenous streptococcal cellulitis in a patient with diabetes.
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Erythema secondary to group A streptococcal cellulitis.
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Invasive soft tissue infection due to Streptococcus pyogenes. This child developed fever and soft-tissue swelling on the fifth day of a varicella-zoster infection. Leading edge aspirate of cellulitis grew S pyogenes. Although the patient responded to intravenous penicillin and clindamycin, operative débridement was necessary because of clinical suspicion of early necrotizing fasciitis.
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Streptococcus group A infections. Necrotizing fasciitis rapidly progresses from erythema to bullae formation and necrosis of skin and subcutaneous tissue.
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Throat swab. Video courtesy of Therese Canares, MD; Marleny Franco, MD; and Jonathan Valente, MD (Rhode Island Hospital, Brown University).
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