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Journal article
Trends in incident acute rheumatic fever or rheumatic heart disease in Indigenous youth in Western Australia: a retrospective cohort study
BMJ open, Vol.15(11), 107621
2025
PMID: 41309472
Abstract
Objective To determine age-specific and age-standardised incidence trends of acute rheumatic fever (ARF) or rheumatic heart disease (RHD) among Indigenous Western Australians aged less than 35 years of age. Design A population-based retrospective cohort study with linked data analysis. Setting Western Australian hospital admissions (1996-2022) and RHD notifications to the state-based register (2011-2015).Participants Patients, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous aged <35 years at diagnosis with incident ARF or RHD. Results Of 1746 incident ARF/RHD cases, 1526 (87%) were Indigenous peoples, with the highest rates observed in patients aged 5-14 years, with an annual estimated increase of 4.3% (95% CI 3.2% to 5.2%). The 0-4 years age group experienced an annual increase in incidence rates of 4.8% (95% CI 1.4% to 8.2%). Overall, Indigenous patients experienced an annual increase of 1.9% (95% CI 1.3% to 2.6%) from 1996 to 2022. However, most cases (n=894) were identified after multiple significant policy developments (2011-2022) with an annual increase of 5.7% (95% CI 3.7% to 7.5%) for this period. Conclusion Increasing trends of incident ARF/RHD were observed in Indigenous patients aged under 15 years, with the greatest annual increments observed after policy implementation for disease reporting and awareness in the period from 2011 to 2022. Improvement in case ascertainment of ARF/RHD may be contributing towards increasing trends with improved reporting and monitoring of incident cases in very young Indigenous Australians more recently.
Details
- Title
- Trends in incident acute rheumatic fever or rheumatic heart disease in Indigenous youth in Western Australia: a retrospective cohort study
- Authors/Creators
- Bradley Macdonald - The University of Western AustraliaNita Sodhi-Berry - The University of Western AustraliaIngrid Stacey - The University of Western AustraliaMelanie Robinson - Princess Margaret Hospital for ChildrenJonathan Carapetis - The Kids Research Institute AustraliaAsha C. Bowen - The University of Western AustraliaCharley Budgeon - The University of Western AustraliaLee Nedkoff - The University of Western AustraliaJudith M. Katzenellenbogen - The University of Western Australia
- Publication Details
- BMJ open, Vol.15(11), 107621
- Publisher
- Bmj Publishing Group
- Number of pages
- 7
- Identifiers
- 991005884943307891
- Copyright
- © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2025
- Murdoch Affiliation
- Ngangk Yira Institute for Change
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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