Life-Saving Effect of the HormonesMost patients with mild rheumatic fever, even though permanent cardiac damage develops, usually survive the acute phase of the illness. On the other hand the mortality for severe attacks of rheumatic fever is not negligible, the fatal outcome in this group being due to the inflammatory process in the heart, which may or may not be superimposed on irreversible changes sustained from previous attacks of the disease. If inflammation in the heart could be completely suppressed or even reduced by cortisone or ACTH, hormone therapy might prevent death from acute rheumatic fever.That hormones may . . .