Heart Disease
I was eleven years old when my oldest sister, Willie, was admitted into the hospital for heart problems. At that age, I didn't understand what was going on with her, but I knew she was very sick. By the time I reached my fifth-teen birthday, my sister was back in the hospital again. It was then that I understood what was happening to my sister. As a baby, my sister was diagnosed with rheumatic fever. Rheumatic fever is a delayed consequence of an untreated upper respiratory infection with group A streptococci (streptococcal pharyngitis or "strep throat") (South Dakota Dept of Health). This disease can cause inflammation of the heart and damage to the heart valves (American Heart Association). Inflammation of the heart leads to scarring and deformity, causing the valves to malfunction (Microsoft Encarta). This strain on the heart muscle causes rheumatic heart disease, which can cause death in middle or later life (Microsoft Encarta). Rheumatic Fever is preventable, but if it is not treated early it can cause serious damage to the heart. The symptoms of rheumatic fever, which usually develop within two weeks but may not appear for several months, includes fever, skin rash, swelling of the joints,
She was no longer that cheerful person. To understand what happens when you have rheumatic fever, you must first know something about the way the body reacts to infections. These antibodies, as they are called, actually become harmful to the tissue of the body (Phibbs 147). The last time my sister was hospitalized I knew something was wrong. The reason you don't die when the first bacteria attacks is that the cells of your body have ways of resisting the bacteria by actually destroying them, and by neutralizing the toxic products they produce (Phibbs 147). Rheumatic heart disease is a condition in which the heart valves are damaged by rheumatic fever (American Heart Association). She continued to be that cheerful person that we could run to when we were feeling down. Recurrence of rheumatic fever is common (Phibbs 152). Rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease killed 3,676 Americans in 1999 (Microsoft Encarta). As the tears rolled down her face, she turned to me and said, "I can see the hurt in your face baby sister, don't be afraid for me because the Lord will take care of me. An infection had once again entered her body. When my sister was taken to the doctor, she was told again that she had rheumatic fever. It is obviously important to treat strep throat as soon as possible to prevent rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease. and involuntary twitching of muscles (Zaret, Moser, and Cohen 260).
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