PREVENTION OF FIRST-ATTACK RHEUMATIC FEVER
Authors: JOHN P. HUBBARD
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1955)

Article1 September 1955PREVENTION OF FIRST-ATTACK RHEUMATIC FEVERJOHN P. HUBBARD, M.D., F.A.C.P.JOHN P. HUBBARD, M.D., F.A.C.P.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-43-3-504 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptToday we hear a great deal about the prevention of rheumatic fever. The leading slogan of the American Heart Association this year is, "Stop Rheumatic Fever." The campaign is accompanied by leaflets, illustrated brochures and films. Wide circulation has been given to a statement entitled "Prevention of Rheumatic Fever and Bacterial Endocarditis through Control of Streptococcal Infections."The campaign is twofold: to prevent first-attack rheumatic fever in the general population, and to prevent recurrent episodes in individuals who have already had a first attack.Prophylactic measures directed toward the second of these objectives have now become well established. Today there...Bibliography1. Prevention of rheumatic fever and bacterial endocarditis through control of streptococcal infections: a statement prepared by the Committee on Prevention of Rheumatic Fever and Bacterial Endocarditis, appointed by the Council on Rheumatic Fever and Congenital Heart Disease of the American Heart Association, Circulation 11: 317-320 (Feb.) 1955. Google Scholar2. MadsenKalbak TK: Rheumatic fever subsequent to some epidemics of septic sore throat, Acta path. et microbiol. Scandinav. 17: 305 (3) 1940. CrossrefGoogle Scholar3. : A study of food-borne epidemic of tonsillitis and pharyngitis due to β-hemolytic streptococcus, type 5, Bull. Johns Hopkins Hosp. 77: 143-210, 1945. MedlineGoogle Scholar4. WeinsteinPotsubay LSF: A comparison of "symptomatic treatment," gamma globulin, and penicillin in treatment of scarlet fever, J. Pediat. 37: 291-306, 1950. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. RammelkampWannamakerDenny CHLWFW: The epidemiology and prevention of rheumatic fever, Bull. New York Acad. Med. 28: 321-334 (May) 1952. MedlineGoogle Scholar6. Massell BF: Present status of penicillin prophylaxis of rheumatic fever, Mod. Concepts Cardiovas. Dis. 20: 108 (Sept.) 1951. MedlineGoogle Scholar7. BunnBennett WHHN: Community control of rheumatic fever, J. A. M. A. 157: 986-989 (Mar. 19) 1955. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. BreeseDisney BBFA: The accuracy of diagnosis of beta streptococcal infections on clinical grounds, J. Pediat. 44: 670-673 (June) 1954. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar This content is PDF only. To continue reading please click on the PDF icon. Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania*From the Symposium on Preventive Medicine, presented at the Thirty-sixth Annual Session of The American College of Physicians, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, April 29, 1955.†George S. Pepper Professor of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Medical School, University of Pennsylvania.‡The specific treatment schedule recommended by the American Heart Association is one of the following:1. Benzathine Penicillin G: one intramuscular injection of 600,000 units for children; 600,000 to 900,000 units for adults.2. Procaine penicillin with aluminum monostearate in oil: one intramuscular injection of 300,000 units every third day for three doses; double this dose for adults (600,000 units every third day for three days).3. Oral penicillin: 250,000 units three times a day for a full 10 days. To prevent rheumatic fever by eradicating streptococci, therapy must be continued for the entire 10 days, even though the temperature returns to normal and the patient is asymptomatic. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byAn Evaluation of a Streptococcal Control ProgramErkrankungen des EndokardSTREPTOCOCCAL INFECTION IN A SCHOOL POPULATION: PRELIMINARY REPORT*†DAVID CORNFELD, M.D., GEORGES WERNER, Ph.D., RUTH WEAVER, M.D., MARJORIE T. BELLOWS, JOHN P. HUBBARD, M.D., F.A.C.P.The Etiology and Pathogenesis of Rheumatic Fever 1 September 1955Volume 43, Issue 3Page: 504-510KeywordsHeartIntramuscular injectionsPenicillinPrevention, policy, and public healthPreventive medicineProphylaxisRheumatic feverStreptococcal infectionsTemperatureUpper respiratory tract infections ePublished: 1 December 2008 Issue Published: 1 September 1955 PDF downloadLoading ...