Acute rheumatic fever (ARF), a serious inflammatory condition, often leads to rheumatic heart disease. Between 2011 and 2016, Aotearoa New Zealand implemented a rheumatic fever prevention programme to reduce high rates of ARF through improved community access to timely diagnosis and early treatment of group A streptococcal pharyngitis, which has been shown to prevent subsequent ARF. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• December 2023

Regular intramuscular benzathine penicillin G injections have been the cornerstone of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) secondary prophylaxis since the 1950s. As the pharmacological correlate of protection remains unknown, it is difficult to recommend changes to this established regimen. Determining the minimum effective penicillin exposure required to prevent Streptococcus pyogenes infection will accelerate development of new long-acting penicillins for RHD prevention as well as inform opportunities to improve existing regimens. The CHIPS trial will address this knowledge gap by directly testing protection afforded by different steady state plasma concentrations of penicillin in an established model of experimental human S. pyogenes pharyngitis. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2022
• December 2022

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) control programs have been recommended by the World Health Organization as the mainstay of reducing the burden of RHD for nearly half a century. Programs should be structured around a disease register of people living with RHD and to support delivery of secondary prophylaxis. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2021
• January 2021

We explore the acceptability of a novel, outreached-based approach to improve primary and primordial prevention of Strep A skin sores, sore throats and acute rheumatic fever in remote Aboriginal communities. A comprehensive prevention program delivered by trained Aboriginal Community Workers was evaluated using approximately fortnightly household surveys about health and housing and clinical records. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2021
• May 2021

The prevalence of group A streptococcal disease remains high among symptomatic individuals residing in Africa ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2020
• May 2020

Rheumatic heart disease in pregnancy persists in First Nations people in Australia and New Zealand and is associated with major cardiac and perinatal morbidity ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2020
• January 2020

The results suggest that timely injection and patient education are priorities for managing ARF and RHD, particularly focusing on child-to-adult transition care ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2020
• January 2020

This report provides an update on the contemporary global and regional policy landscapes relevant to rheumatic heart disease ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2019
• January 2019

We estimated the global disease prevalence of and mortality due to rheumatic heart disease over a 25-year period ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2017
• August 2017

To describe the pattern of RHD occurrence in a sample of presenting cases from an occupational cohort in Papua Province, Indonesia. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2015
• July 2015