Screening for Rheumatic Heart Disease among Peruvian Children: A Two-Stage Sampling Observational Study.

Spitzer, Ernest; Mercado, Jorge; Islas, Fabian; Rothenbühler, Martina; Kurmann, Reto; Zürcher, Fabian Johann; Krähenmann, Peter; Llerena, Nassip; Jüni, Peter; Torres, Pedro; Pilgrim, Thomas (2015). Screening for Rheumatic Heart Disease among Peruvian Children: A Two-Stage Sampling Observational Study. PLoS ONE, 10(7), e0133004. Public Library of Science 10.1371/journal.pone.0133004

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BACKGROUND

The objective of the study was to evaluate the implications of different classifications of rheumatic heart disease on estimated prevalence, and to systematically assess the importance of incidental findings from echocardiographic screening among schoolchildren in Peru.

METHODS

We performed a cluster randomized observational survey using portable echocardiography among schoolchildren aged 5 to 16 years from randomly selected public and private schools in Arequipa, Peru. Rheumatic heart disease was defined according to the modified World Health Organization (WHO) criteria and the World Heart Federation (WHF) criteria.

FINDINGS

Among 1395 eligible students from 40 classes and 20 schools, 1023 (73%) participated in the present survey. The median age of the children was 11 years (interquartile range [IQR] 8-13 years) and 50% were girls. Prevalence of possible, probable and definite rheumatic heart disease according to the modified WHO criteria amounted to 19.7/1000 children and ranged from 10.2/1000 among children 5 to 8 years of age to 39.8/1000 among children 13 to 16 years of age; the prevalence of borderline/definite rheumatic heart disease according to the WHF criteria was 3.9/1000 children. 21 children (2.1%) were found to have congenital heart disease, 8 of which were referred for percutaneous or surgical intervention.

CONCLUSIONS

Prevalence of RHD in Peru was considerably lower compared to endemic regions in sub-Saharan Africa, southeast Asia, and Oceania; and paralleled by a comparable number of undetected congenital heart disease. Strategies to address collateral findings from echocardiographic screening are necessary in the setup of active surveillance programs for RHD.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02353663.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > Medical Education > Institute of General Practice and Primary Care (BIHAM)
04 Faculty of Medicine > Pre-clinic Human Medicine > Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM)
04 Faculty of Medicine > Pre-clinic Human Medicine > Department of Clinical Research (DCR)
04 Faculty of Medicine > Department of Cardiovascular Disorders (DHGE) > Clinic of Cardiology

UniBE Contributor:

Rothenbühler, Martina, Kurmann, Reto, Zürcher, Fabian Johann, Krähenmann, Peter, Jüni, Peter, Pilgrim, Thomas

Subjects:

600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 360 Social problems & social services

ISSN:

1932-6203

Publisher:

Public Library of Science

Language:

English

Submitter:

Doris Kopp Heim

Date Deposited:

26 Nov 2015 16:05

Last Modified:

20 Feb 2024 14:17

Publisher DOI:

10.1371/journal.pone.0133004

PubMed ID:

26208006

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.73449

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/73449

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