Medical Emergencies · single question
A patient who had rheumatic fever as a child is most likely to develop which long-term complication?
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Correct answer: B. Rheumatic heart disease (mitral valve disease)
- A. ❌ Bacterial endocarditis is a risk in patients with valve disease but is not the direct sequela — rheumatic heart disease comes first.
- B. ✅ Correct. The most important long-term sequela of rheumatic fever is RHEUMATIC HEART DISEASE — specifically mitral valve stenosis or regurgitation from scarring of valve leaflets. This is why patients with a history of rheumatic fever with residual valve damage may require antibiotic prophylaxis.
- C. ❌ Septic arthritis is a direct joint infection, not a sequela of rheumatic fever.
- D. ❌ Rheumatoid arthritis is an unrelated autoimmune joint disease.
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