Conference moira::parenting

    
    Actually, these days it is no big deal.
    
    Scarlet fever is caused by the same bacteria that causes a Strep
    throat (Steptococci). 
    
    What happens in Scarlet fever is that the *toxins* from the bacteria in
    the throat get into the blood system causing a systemic reaction. Sort
    of like Toxic shock syndrome.
    
    The reason people used to die was that *without* being treated you run
    the risk of the strep bacteria actually getting into the blood system,
    at that point, the condition is called rhuematic fever and heart damage
    is almost always seen.
    
    Anyone can get Scarlet Fever, no one is more prone than anyone else,
    when I first started working as a microbiologist, I got it several
    times during the first year. (hazards of the job).
    
    Once the child is on antibiotics for 24 hours, he can safely join
    others. There is no need for quartentine and unlike the popular story,
    there is no need to burn his bunny.
    
    			Wendy    

    A couple years ago my husband took my then 4 year old son to 
    the pediatrician to look at a sore throat.  It was diagnosed
    as stret and because my husband also had a sore throat, he
    and Michael were both quarantined for 48 hours and given 
    antibiotics.  Months later when I was preparing the doctor's
    receipt to send in to John Hancock, I noticed the diagnosis
    also read Scarlet Fever.  I freaked!  I called my husband and
    he said "oh, I didn't tell you that before?".  I had completely
    forgotten that Michael also had a minor rash at the same time
    as his sore throat.  Since the doctor didn't make a big deal
    about Scarlet Fever, my husband figured it wasn't a problem.
    After talking to the doctor (many months after the fact), he
    said the same thing as Wendy. It really isn't a problem these days.
    
    Jodi- 

    My daughter Megann got scarlet fever at age 3 after having been
    exposed to strep throat.  After being on antibiotics for 24
    hours she was fine and had no long term effects.   What Wendy
    described in .1 is exactly what the doctor told me.  The other
    thing they told us was to monitor the temperature (hers was
    really high) because prolonged high temperature was another
    risk.  Hers went down with tylenol and stayed down once the
    antibiotics took effect.
    
    Like you, I was kind of surprised but I guess the reason we
    don't hear as much about it these days is because its easy to
    treat before it gets to the point of creating more serious
    problems.
    
    Robyn
    

Scarlet fever is essentially a strep infection of the blood ...

The reason it isn't seen as much is because most strep infections start
with the throat ... and we are getting kids strep throats treated much
sooner these days so it usually doesn't spread to the blood stream and
result in Scarlet Fever.  Generally speaking, scarlet fever isn't the
horror it was once considered as long as it is treated agressively with
antibiotics.

It used to be quarantinable!

Stuart

    I have gotten Scarlet Fever 4 times during the last 3 years.
    It seems when ever I get strept throat, I also get Scarlet Fever.
    
    The first time I got it, I looked like a tomato, I had a rash soo bad,
    however I thought I was just having  a reaction to some new soap. 
    Boy was I suprised when the Dr told me I has Scarlet Fever.  
    Now, when ever I get a store throat, and then develop a rash, I know
    for sure I have strept, and call the Dr to get the anitbiodics.
    
    Anne Marie

    Scarlet fever seems to be making the rounds these days. My sitter's
    daughter came down with it about 3 or 4 weeks ago, and her pedi treated
    all her kids with antibiotics even though only 1 child had it. We had
    my kids cultured at my pedi just in case as we went in 2 days after the
    scarlet fever diagnosis for a well-baby check, so they did the culture
    as long as we were there. Neither of my two got it, but it sure does
    seem to be making the rounds.

I felt like some sort of negligent father last year when we took our son in
for persistent high fever, and the chest X-rays finally revealed pneumonia!!!
Since he was perfectly active (despite 102 temp), we and the doctor were not
too concerned about his general health, but it sure did stop me in my tracks.
And of course when we told our parents, they really freaked, being of the
generation where pneumonia was still a common killer. Not that it's a walk
in the park now, but antibiotics knocked it right out. 'Course, this year when
he had the same symptoms, and the ER doc again couldn't figure out the problem,
we badgered him into doing an X-ray, but no repeat, just a general bronchial
infection.