Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34636404›Full record

SynthesisTransactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene2022

Predictors of rheumatic fever in sore throat patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Ellen Kulik, Beth Stuart, Merlin Willcox

Open access · hybridAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 25% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Global heart · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Ellen KulikSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, Aldermoor Health Centre, Aldermoor Close, Southampton SO16 5ST, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-8785-8952
Beth StuartSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, Aldermoor Health Centre, Aldermoor Close, Southampton SO16 5ST, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-5432-7437
Merlin WillcoxSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, Aldermoor Health Centre, Aldermoor Close, Southampton SO16 5ST, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-5227-3444
Broadmoor Hospital · GB

Funding

Department of Health CL-2016-26-005
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundConcerns about rheumatic fever (RF) drive antibiotic prescriptions for sore throat (ST) in endemic areas. Better guidance is needed on which patients are likely to develop RF in order to avoid misuse and overuse of antibiotics. Our aim was to identify predictive factors for RF in ST patients.

methodsMultiple databases were searched to identify cohort, case-control, cross-sectional or randomised controlled trials that measured RF incidence in ST patients. An inverse variance random effects model was used to pool the data and calculate odds ratios (ORs).

resultsSeven studies with a total of 6890 participants were included: three RCTs and four observational studies. Factors significantly associated with RF development following ST were positive group A streptococcal (GAS) swab (OR 1.74 [95% confidence interval {CI} 1.13 to 2.69]), previous RF history (OR 13.22 [95% CI 4.86 to 35.93]) and a cardiac murmur (OR 3.55 [95% CI 1.81 to 6.94]). Many potential risk factors were not reported in any of the included studies, highlighting important evidence gaps.

conclusionsST patients in endemic areas with a positive GAS swab, previous RF history and a cardiac murmur are at increased risk of developing RF. This review identifies vital gaps in our knowledge of factors predicting RF development in ST patients. Further research is needed to develop better clinical prediction tools and rationalise antibiotic use for ST.

Indexed as

PharyngitisRheumatic FeverStreptococcal InfectionsAnti-Bacterial AgentsCross-Sectional StudiesHumansIncidenceAnti-Bacterial Agentspharyngitisrheumatic feverrisk factorsstreptococcal infectionssystematic review

Identifiers

PMID34636404
PMCPMC8978297
OpenAlexW3207105518

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.