What is the symptoms of rheumatic heart disease?
Symptoms of rheumatic fever, which can lead to rheumatic heart disease, include: Swelling, redness and pain in the joints. An inflammation of the heart muscle and tissue, causing a rapid heart rate, fatigue, shortness of breath and exercise intolerance. Fever.
What is the main cause of rheumatic heart disease?
What causes rheumatic heart disease? Rheumatic heart disease is caused by rheumatic fever, an inflammatory disease that can affect many connective tissues, especially in the heart, joints, skin, or brain. The heart valves can be inflamed and become scarred over time.
What are the complications of rheumatic heart disease?
Complications include heart failure, which means the heart is unable to pump blood effectively. The strain causes the heart to enlarge. Other complications of RHD include infection of damaged heart valves (infective endocarditis) and stroke due to clots forming in the enlarged heart or on damaged valves.
What is the pathogenesis of rheumatic fever?
Acute rheumatic fever is a multiorgan inflammatory disorder affecting the heart, joints, brain, and skin. The pathogenic mechanism of molecular mimicry involves autoantibodies and T cells directed against group A streptococcal cell wall components and heart or brain antigens that have been extensively investigated.
Which virus causes rheumatic fever?
Rheumatic fever can occur after a throat infection from a bacteria called group A streptococcus. Group A streptococcus infections of the throat cause strep throat or, less commonly, scarlet fever.
Who is most affected by rheumatic heart disease?
Rheumatic heart disease is the most commonly acquired heart disease in people under age 25, and mostly affects children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries.
What is the best treatment for rheumatic fever?
Treatment for rheumatic fever may include: Antibiotics. Penicillin or another antibiotic is typically prescribed to treat the strep bacteria. After the first antibiotic treatment is fully finished, a provider typically prescribes another course of antibiotics to prevent recurrence of rheumatic fever.
Are there any conditions that mimic rheumatoid arthritis (RA)?
There are conditions that mimic rheumatoid arthritis, especially early in the course of the disease. The primary common characteristic is polyarthritis. A patient’s medical history, observation of symptoms and disease manifestations over time, and additional diagnostic testing help distinguish the conditions from rheumatoid arthritis.
What is molecular mimicry in autoimmune diseases?
One mechanism is molecular mimicry, where a foreign antigen shares sequence or structural similarities with self-antigens. Molecular mimicry has typically been characterized on an antibody or T cell level. However, structural relatedness between pathogen and self does not account for T cell activation in a number of autoimmune diseases.
Are gut microbes linked to rheumatoid arthritis?
Gut Microbes Linked to Rheumatoid Arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disorder that can cause pain, swelling, stiffness, and loss of function in the finger, wrist, and other joints throughout the body. It occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s own tissue, such as the membranes that line the joints.
What is the mechanism of action of belimumab for rheumatoid arthritis (RA)?
BLyS is elevated in the serum and synovial fluid of patients with RA and is associated with increased RF levels. The BLyS mechanism of action of is importance in the survival of B cells, and its inhibition can lead to the apoptosis of autoimmune B-cell clones. 126 However, Belimumab was not effective in phase II clinical trials for RA.