An acute contagious disease beginning, usually, from several hours to a week after a person has been exposed to it. Like other infectious diseases, scarlet fever begins with vomiting or chills, followed by high fever, rapid pulse, sore throat, swelling of the glands in the neck and a scarlet-red eruption which appears on the skin. The tongue is heavily coated at first, and red at the tip and edges. Later, the papillae of the tongue become red and swollen, giving the tongue the appearance that is called strawberry tongue. Scarlet fever seems especially to damage the kidneys and one of the most important steps is to make sure that everything possible is done to protect the vital organs.The discovery of the sulfonamide drugs and the antibiotics is chiefly responsible for the tremendous control that has developed over scarlet fever. The condition is now kept mild, and the secondary complications related to the nose, throat, ears and kidneys are quite rare. Scarlet fever is a member of the group of diseases that are caused by streptococci, which, fortunately, are especially susceptible to the antibiotic drugs.*34/318/5*
