Exanthematous diseases: Recognition of scarlet fever 2015/04/22

First fever and then strange spots (rash) on our child’s body... what could it be? It could be an eruptive disease. Obviously, the first advice is: Call the pediatrician! Meanwhile, let’s get informed about this contagious diseases...

Firstly let’s clear up the term “exanthematous”: it means that the disease manifests in an exanthema (from de Greek “bloom”), which is a skin eruption formed by redness of the skin, pustules, blisters and bubbles. The French word “rush” (rash) is also used which means “to scratch”, since it usually causes itchiness

Exanthematous diseases can be especially contracted at a pediatric age, but teens and adults are not immune if they haven’t suffered experiences of this genre when they were children

One of these diseases that can be contracted more than once in a lifetime is called SCARLET FEVER

It’s the only exanthematous disease caused by a bacteria, the group A streptococcus, which produces a harmful toxin for humans, same that causes scarlet red color from which the disease takes its name

It’s spread by air and saliva, therefore with sneezing and coughing and by contact with objects touched by the patient (toys, books, etc.) for this reason, it spreads fast among children

The incubation period, when its already contagious, is approximately of 5 days, while the symptoms are headaches, fever, sore throat and difficulty swallowing, this is why it can be confused with pharyngitis: to diagnose scarlet fever, the pediatrician prescribes a pharyngeal swab sample to do a lab analysis. Only in a later stage the exanthema appears; nevertheless, not all children present the same symptoms and this depends on the quantity of toxins that have affected them and the disease is only noticeable when the redness is produced

Redness appears on the trunk and under the belly towards the pubis, causing itchiness and then peeling. Cheeks turn red and the tongue turns white, then yellow, then red with little pustules, with raspberry or strawberry like appearance (red with white spots)

Once presence of the bacteria has been verified (or typical redness), the pediatrician prescribes an antibiotic treatment for approximately ten days, even after 48 hours of therapy the disease can no longer be transmitted and the child can go back to school

To alleviate the scarlet fever discomfort, we recommend a liquid and fresh diet to alleviate the throat, so you can give a little bit of ice cream to your children

Another small advice: if your child has scarlet fever, keep an eye on the entire family!

This is an informative note, it does not replace your children’s pediatrician opinion

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