Scarlet Fever: A Pathogen Study by Isabel Heidorn

Scarlet Fever CDC Page

iheidorn — 2023-11-21 14:43:24 UTC

Symptoms of Scarlet Fever

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What Causes Scarlet Fever?

iheidorn — 2023-11-21 14:55:26 UTC

Scarlet fever is caused by a Group A Streptococcus bacteria called Streptococcus pyogenes.

What is Scarlet Fever?

iheidorn — 2023-11-21 15:00:52 UTC

Scarlet fever, also known as scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by Streptococcus pyogenes, a Group A streptococcus (GAS).The infection is a type of Group A streptococcal infection (Group A strep). It most commonly affects children between five and 15 years of age.The signs and symptoms include a sore throat, fever, headache, swollen lymph nodes, and a characteristic rash.The face is flushed and the rash is red and blanching.It typically feels like sandpaper and the tongue may be red and bumpy. The rash occurs as a result of capillary damage by exotoxins produced by S.pyogenes.On darker-pigmented skin the rash may be hard to discern.

Current Trend of Scarlet Fever

iheidorn — 2023-11-21 15:11:24 UTC

"Hospital admissions for scarlet fever increased by 97% between 2013 and 2016; one in 40 cases were admitted for management of the condition or potential complications. Analysis of strains (n=303) identified a diversity of emm types with emm3 (43%), emm12 (15%), emm1 (11%), and emm4 (9%) being the most common."

Preventing Scarlet Fever

iheidorn — 2023-12-04 04:57:37 UTC

Prevention: Good hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette can reduce the spread of all types of group A strep infection. Hand hygiene is especially important after coughing and sneezing and before preparing foods or eating. Good respiratory etiquette involves covering your cough or sneeze.

https://www.cdc.gov/groupastrep/diseases-hcp/scarlet-fever.html#:~:text=Penicillin%20or%20amoxicillin%20is%20the,that%20is%20resistant%20to%20penicillin.

Diagnosis and Treatment

iheidorn — 2023-12-04 05:03:16 UTC

Diagnosis: Clinicians need to use either a rapid antigen detection test (RADT) or throat culture to confirm scarlet fever with pharyngitis. RADTs have high specificity for group A strep but varying sensitivities when compared to throat culture. Throat culture is the gold standard diagnostic test.

Treatment: Penicillin or amoxicillin is the antibiotic of choice to treat scarlet fever. There has never been a report of a clinical isolate of group A strep that is resistant to penicillin. For patients with a penicillin allergy, recommended regimens include narrow-spectrum cephalosporins (e.g., cephalexin, cefadroxil), clindamycin, azithromycin, and clarithromycin.

https://www.cdc.gov/groupastrep/diseases-hcp/scarlet-fever.html#:~:text=Clinicians%20need%20to%20use%20either,the%20gold%20standard%20diagnostic%20test.

Scarlet Fever Infographic

iheidorn — 2023-12-04 05:08:54 UTC

Scientist Who Studied Scarlet Fever

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Pathologist Gladys Dick

Scarlet Fever Video

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