Tag Archives: rheumatic fever

Introduction Rheumatic fever is the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children and young adults in the world.1,2 The relationship between rheumatic fever and streptococcal infection has been well documented.3,4 Stenosis of the mitral valve, either alone or in combination with other valvular diseases, is caused almost exclusively by rheumatic fever.3 Involvement of the mitral valve represents the most common of all sites affected by the rheumatic process.5 However, as many as half of the population with mitral stenosis give no history of rheumatic fever.5 On the other hand, the majority of patients with mitral stenosis remain asympto