ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Scarlet Fever Symptoms and Facts

Updated on March 17, 2014
Cardisa profile image

Carolee is a passionate writer with a love for learning and teaching. She is a published author, poet, blogger, and content creator.

Source

When I first heard of scarlet fever I was reminded of the weird fevers people used to have in the olden days that could not be treated and so it was. Many people suffered these unknown fevers. The name "scarlet fever" was given to this disease based on it's appearance and of course the fact that it was a fever.

Before we can talk about the symptoms of scarlet fever we have to know what scarlet fever is or what causes it. Scarlet fever is caused by the streptococci bacteria. This bacteria produces a poison that causes us to get a red rash. This disease used to be very prevalent among children but is now very treatable.

The streptococci bacterium is the same one that causes a strep throat so I would suggest getting treatment for your strep throat and don't let get out of hand. Since it's a bacteria and not a virus most likely you will need antibiotics. See section on treatments. These bacteria are classified in different groups with some causing different illnesses via the toxins they produce.

The most prominent symptom of scarlet fever is a rash that looks somewhat like a bad sunburn. This rash normally starts on the back of the neck then spreads to the other part of the body.

Source

Symptoms of scarlet fever

These signs are symtomatic of scarlet fever. They usually start to show themselves within two days of coming in contact with the bacteria. As the name suggests: scarlet - red and fever, the symptoms to first present themselves are usually a fever, sore throat and redness on the armpits and groin. Other symptoms will follow shortly.

  • fever
  • headaches
  • vomiting
  • tummy ache
  • chills
  • strep throat
  • red rashy tongue
  • red sunburn-like rashes that starts on the neck and chest. As the disease gets worse they spread.
  • Redness on the arm-pits and near the groin area.


Treatment

If you didn't know before, strep throat can lead to rheumatic fever and of course it does cause scarlet fever.

Strep throat is a caused by a bacteria. Bacteria causes infections. Infections can only be treated with antibiotics. So it lends to reason that if I have scarlet fever I will have to see a doctor and not try to treat it myself as with a common cold.

A prescription antibiotic will be supplied by your physician and in severe cases you might be hospitalized and treated there until they are satisfied that you are well enough to be sent home.

You know when your condition is serious if your symptoms persist beyond 24 hours of antibiotic treatment or more symptoms develop. In other words, once you start to take the antibiotics you should be feeling better not worse or the same.

Complications and prevention

As with most diseases caused from bacteria, if left untreated for too long scarlet fever can develop into more serious and even life threatening illnesses. Complications can still occur with the correct treatment but very unlikely. Some of these complications are:

  • Pneumonia
  • Rheumatic fever
  • Arthritis
  • Osteomyelitis
  • Kidney failure
  • Ear infection
  • Sinusitis
  • Meningitis
  • Hepatitis

~~~~

If you know someone with scarlet fever stay away from them or be as careful as possible. If it is at all possible, wear a mask when around them and wash your hand with antibacterial soap as often as possible.

Be careful around someone with a strep throat. Make sure family members are careful and not drink from the same container before washing. Proper hygiene and sanitation is very essential to keeping healthy.

~~~~

Discalaimer

This article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. You take full legal responsibility for whatever decisions you make regarding you own health care. Consult your health care provider.


© 2012 Carolee Samuda

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)