What Medications Can Be Used to Prevent RHD and Treat RHD?
Q:
My son has been suffering from rheumatic fever for a while. What medications can be used to prevent RHD and treat RHD?
A:
There are two types of medications to treat rheumatic heart disease (RHD), antibiotics and anti-inflammatory. However, your son’s specific medications are given based on his tolerance.
Antibiotics is a necessary treatment for patients who have acute rheumatic fever (ARF), no matter how the throat culture results. Although antibiotic treatment is not likely to reduce the risk of developing RHD, it can minimize the possibility of a rheumatogenic streptococcal strain’s transmission. For example, primary prophylaxis used to treat streptococcal pharyngitis can reduce the risk of ARF to a extensive degree. It shall be used upon the confirmation of group A streptococcal pharyngitis.
Two main anti-inflammatory treatments for ARF are salicylates and corticosteroids. However, such drugs are only used after the confirmation of the diagnosis, because it may relieve the symptoms that are important for the diagnosis. If anti-inflammatory therapy stops, clinical manifestations may recur.
If RHD has been developed, medications may be given to reduce the inflammation and to treat heart failure.
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