What is Rheumatic Heart Disease? Rheumatic Heart Disease involves damage to the heart valves after the onset of rheumatic fever. The valvular damage may become noticeable only after several years of the fever. Rheumatic fever is a disease that can be caused or triggered by a strep throat or scarlet fever that hasn’t been attended to properly. It causes inflammation in connective tissues of heart, joints, brain and the spinal cord. Not everyone with rheumatic fever will develop rheumatic heart disease but if left untreated, it can turn into a life-threatening condition. The most common heart problem caused by rheumatic fever is heart valve disease, but the inflammation can affect all parts of the heart, causing problems like pericarditis, endocarditis and heart block.
How do I know if I have Rheumatic Heart Disease? Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) is often caused by rheumatic fever, whose signs and symptoms include:
- Fever and chills
- Pain in joints
- Redness and swelling in joints
- Chest pain
- Heart murmur
- Bumps under the skin
The indications that you might have developed rheumatic heart disease include: - Fatigue and tiredness
- Weakness
- Shortness of breath
- Dizziness
- Light-headedness
- Uncomfortable feeling in the chest
- Stomach in feet, ankles and stomach
- Heartbreak palpitations, i.e., irregular heartbeats
Who is more likely to suffer from RHD? Rheumatic fever is unlikely to affect people from developed countries. People from countries where rheumatic fever is quite common are more likely to contract it. People living in central and northern Australia are considered to be at a high risk of developing rheumatic fever and disease. People who have had multiple episodes of rheumatic fever with carditis are also likely to develop serious RHD. People of any age group can be affected, although young children up to the age of 15 are most likely to be affected.
How can Rheumatic Heart Disease be treated? It can be treated effectively through antibiotics, which prevent another wave of rheumatic fever. Children may need to take medicines for a very long period of time. Other lifestyle factors must also be controlled in order to ensure the prevention of rheumatic fever. These include quitting smoking and drinking, being physically active and reducing stress.
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