Prognosis
When proper treatment is provided for patients with rat bite fever, the prognosis is positive. Without treatment, the infection usually resolves on its own, although it may take up to a year to do so. A particular strain of rat bite fever that is located in the United States can progress and cause serious complications that can be potentially fatal. Before antibiotics were used for the treatment of rat bite fever, many cases resulted in death. If left untreated, streptobacillary can result in infection in the lining of the heart, covering over the spinal cord and brain, or in the lungs. Any tissue or organ throughout the body may develop a pocket of infection and pus, called an abscess.
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