Recurrent abdominal and cervical pains. An unusual clinical presentation of acute rheumatic fever.
Most cases of acute rheumatic fever (ARF) present with arthritis, carditis or choreiform movements. However, a variety of clinical manifestations which are not included in the modified Jones criteria can be the presenting symptoms of the disease. We describe a case of a 10-year-old boy with ARF who presented with recurrent episodes of abdominal and cervical pain who later developed an active carditis which established the diagnosis of ARF. A high degree of suspicion and an awareness of the less common manifestations of ARF are necessary to make an early diagnosis and initiate appropriate treatment in certain cases of ARF.
D000005:Abdomen; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology*; D012213:Rheumatic Fever / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D012214:Rheumatic Heart Disease / Q000175:diagnosis