Rheumatic heart diseases : One of the leading causes of heart disease in children and adults

13/11/2019 07:26

Rheumatic heart  disease (RHD)  is an infection – intoxication – immunity, occurring after infection of group of bacteria A streptococcus, manifested by damage to the heart, joints and blood vessels. General clinical of RHD is manifested in many organs, in which the heart damage is the most dangerous, which can cause death or injury caused directly at the valve. Therefore, early detection, appropriate care to prevent the disease is extremely important.

 

Ass. Prof. Nguyen Huu Uoc – Director of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Center, Viet Duc University Hospital said: “RHD is one of the leading causes of heart disease in both children and adults, often found in developing countries, including Vietnam. RHD is common in children, aged from 5-15 years. Without treatment, about 3% of children with strep throat by bacteria of  beta-A streptococcus group  will have RHD. The disease mostly occurs in areas with low living conditions, cramped housing, poor sanitation, difficult economy, cold and humid climate … this is a condition for children to be susceptible to sore throat. In addition, the disease also has a family factor.”

Clinical manifestations of RHD usually occur 2 to 4 weeks or longer after a person has strep throat. These manifestations may appear independently or in combination with each other.

 

– At the joints: manifesting inflammation, heat, redness, pain in many joints and inflammation of the large joints, which are movable in nature, when leaving without sequelae

 

– At heart : heart murmur, or heart palpitations, enlarged heart, small pulse

 

–Subcutaneous Meynet : solid mode, mobile, big as beans to corn kernels, often palpable in the joints and spine, persistence about 1-2 weeks to 1-2 months, then disappeared without traces.

 

– Erythema: signs that there are organizational changes under the skin, disappear quickly, leaving no sequelae.

 

– Chorea: neurological disorder leading to involuntary movement due to brain damage.

 

– There are also other manifestations such as glomerulonephritis, pneumonia, acute hepatitis, vascular lesions …

 

Ass. Prof. Nguyen Huu Uoc also warns that: The progression of RHD varies and the prognosis is difficult to confirm in advance, it should be noted that the disease recurs. Recurrence usually occurs after 5 years after the first level and a patient with low posterior valvular sequelae has a rate of 5 times the recurrence of patients without sequelae.

 

Patients should adhere to the doctor’s treatment regimen. Depending on the condition, the patient will have different treatment regimens, if there is heart failure, it must be treated for heart failure, if there are neurological signs then the treatments are for neurological signs.

 

So far, RHD is still one of the most common diseases in developing countries due to low living conditions. To prevent it, each person needs to stay warm, keep daily oral hygiene, avoid sore throat. At the same time, the early detection of damage caused by RHD and long-term prophylactic treatment with antibiotics will help minimize complications of the disease. Especially for people with cardiovascular complications, need to be monitored annually by echocardiography, to evaluate the extent of damage and plan for early intervention. People should go for periodic health checks at prestigious medical facilities to promptly detect and treat the disease.

 

Along with that, the rate of acquired cardiovascular diseases in Vietnam also increases gradually according to the general rate of the world, typically coronary artery disease. Many studies have shown that it is necessary to screen for coronary artery disease in patients with average age of over 50 years old. Therefore, in order to advise people on how to detect and treat RHD  as well as cardiovascular diseases, Viet Duc University Hospital will organize a FREE MEDICAL EXAMINATION AND CONSULTATION PROGRAM with leading by cardiologists.