Symptoms of scarlet fever

Symptoms of scarlet fever usually appear 2 to 4 days after exposure to the bacteria, during the incubation period.

Then suddenly appear:

• A high fever (at least 38,3 ºC or 101 ºF).
• A severe sore throat causing difficulty in swallowing (dysphagia).
• Redness and swelling of the throat.
• Swelling of the glands in the neck.

Sometimes are added:

• Headaches
• Stomach aches
• Nausea or vomiting.

One to two days later:

• A reddish rash (a diffuse redness dotted with small red pimples) that first appears in the neck, face and flexion folds (armpits, elbows, thighs). The redness fades with the pressure of the finger. The rashes can spread to the rest of the body in 2 or 3 days (upper chest, lower abdomen, face, extremities). The skin then takes on the texture of sandpaper.
• Un whitish coating on the tongue. When this disappears, the tongue and the palate take on a bright red color, like a raspberry.

After 2 to 7 days:

• A peeling skin.

There are also attenuated forms of disease. This mild form of scarlet fever is manifested by:

• A lower fever
• Rashes more pink than red and localized in the folds of flexions.
• The same symptoms as the normal form of scarlet fever for the throat and tongue.

People at risk

• Children from 5 to 15 years old. (Children under 2 years of age are often protected against scarlet fever by antibodies transmitted by their mother during pregnancy, via the placenta).

Risk factors

• The infection spreads more easily between people who live in close contact, for example between members of the same family or among students in the same class.