Masterton

This research aims to find out whether an early three-day oral steroid treatment called dexamethasone can improve both physical and mental recovery in children with Sydenhams chorea. Sydenhams chorea is a movement disorder caused by brain inflammation after an abnormal immune response to certain bacterial infections, affecting childrens movements, mood, and concentration. The condition commonly affects children with acute rheumatic fever, and recovery can take months. The study is a phase 3, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial involving children in New Zealand and Australia. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either oral dexamethasone or a placebo for three days. The dexamethasone dose is 20 mg per square meter of body surface per day, divided into three doses, with a maximum of 24 mg per day. The placebo group will take matching capsules on the same schedule. This short course treatment is being tested to see if it reduces the severity of Sydenhams chorea and its psychiatric symptoms. Children in the study will be monitored through scheduled visits on days three, seven, one month, three months, and twelve months. Researchers will assess chorea severity, relapse rates, psychiatric symptoms, hospital stay length, and treatment failure. Safety will be checked for any side effects possibly related to dexamethasone. The trial plans to recruit 80 participants, and overall involvement may last up to 12 months to track recovery and treatment effects comprehensively.