Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) starts with a Strep A infection of the throat or skin. If untreated, the infection can lead to acute rheumatic fever (ARF) which can feature sore joints, fever, and heart inflammation. While the other symptoms of ARF go away the heart damage can remain, and this is known as RHD. If not managed properly, it can cause heart failure, disability, or death.

In many places around the world, economic development, improved living conditions and access to health care have all but eliminated RHD.

But in Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to live with one of the highest burdens of RHD in the world.

RHD is a preventable disease.

In response to this urgent and unacceptable situation, work is being done at Menzies School of Health Research to help affected communities address RHD with locally relevant solutions.

Previously, diagnosing RHD could only be done by highly trained specialists using an echocardiogram, a specialised ultrasound of the heart. Many people needing access to this diagnostic test were unable to receive it due to both the enormity of distances to travel to city centers where this technology is available and the difficulty in transporting heart scanning equipment to remote locations.

However, as technology has evolved, we are implementing and evaluating new approaches. The Menzies team is now working on a research study to improve access to screening, diagnosis, and quality care for RHD in Aboriginal communities in Australia, and in Timor-Leste.

Working in partnership with community leaders and local partners, the study will train local healthcare workers, nurses, and GPs to use a handheld ultrasound “echo” device to look for evidence of RHD. Children and pregnant women will be able to access heart scans as part of their routine health checks, to pick up heart disease early, rather than investigating only when symptoms have developed later down the track when heart disease is already advanced. Medical specialists will assist in reviewing the images remotely and provide advice and support to local health workers, enabling treatment and ongoing care to be provided within communities in a timely manner, requiring less long-distance travel.

In an earlier study, this approach was proven to deliver the knowledge and skills needed to make accurate diagnoses. Over 100 cases of RHD have been found using handheld echo devices. All children diagnosed have been able to access treatment that stops rheumatic heart disease from progressing to heart failure and death.

The current research will measure the impact of this novel approach on a broader scale, and at the same time provide access to treatment for children and women who would have otherwise remained undiagnosed.

Join us in the effort to improve health outcomes for this preventable disease of RHD.

For more information:

- Follow our work on the Menzies School of Health Research Rheumatic Heart Disease page

- Watch the film “Take Heart: Deadly Heart” released on National Close the Gap Day 2022 and, demanding immediate action to end RHD. Take Heart: Deadly Heart was made by working closely with children, families, communities, and health experts. Their stories show you that by investing in community-led initiatives and prevention programs, RHD is a problem that can be solved (available via online options).

- You can follow the Take Heart Deadly Heart campaign.

- For a deeper understanding of the issues surrounding RHD, here's a link to the recent Four Corners episode which exposes the realities of RHD in Australia https://iview.abc.net.au/video/NC2203H005S00