Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) Causes & Treatment

There are more than 25 lakh patients in India who suffer from Rheumatic Heart Disease. And the number of patients affected by this life-threatening heart disease seems to be growing with every year passing.

What starts as rheumatic fever when not adequately treated inflames the valves and results in Rheumatic Heart Disease which causes long term heart damage and necessitates heart surgery as treatment.

Since the disease progresses gradually, it is important to improve awareness to identify and seek necessary medical help as soon as possible. So in this blog today with the help of best cardiac surgeon and leading heart transplant specialist in Hyderabad Padma Shri Awardee Dr Alla Gopal Krishna Gokhale, we dive into the causes, risk factors and treatment for Rheumatic Heart Disease. Read on to know:

What is Rheumatic Heart Disease?

Rheumatic Heart Disease is a life-threatening heart condition that is caused due to heart valve damage.

This condition is triggered and developed after one of the multiple bouts of rheumatic fever. Heart failure, ruptured heart valve, infection of the inner lining of the heart pregnancy issues due to the damaged heart are some of the complications caused by Rheumatic Heart Disease.

What causes Rheumatic Heart Disease?

As said, one or several episodes of rheumatic fever may cause Rheumatic Heart Disease. Rheumatic fever is an autoimmune disorder that is developed in the body when the infections like strep throat and scarlet fever are not treated properly.

Symptoms of Rheumatic Heart Disease:

It usually takes 1-6 weeks post these sub-treated infections to develop rheumatic fever which is developed as the body’s reaction to guard against the bacteria that has caused scarlet fever or strep throat.

Fever, tender and painful joints, fatigue, painless lumps under the skin, uncontrolled and jerky movements are some of the common symptoms rheumatic fever causes in the patient.

When the fever triggers heart damage the symptoms experienced by the patient include chest pain, shortness of breath and swelling.

Who is at more risk of developing Rheumatic Heart Disease?

Children and adolescents and people under age 25 are usually affected by Rheumatic Heart Disease. “This risk drastically increases for this age group when their strep infections or scarlet fevers are not adequately treated”, says cardiac surgeon in Hyderabad Dr Alla Gopala Krishna Gokhale.

What is the treatment for Rheumatic Heart Disease?

The treatment for Rheumatic Heart Disease depends on the extent of damage done to the heart valves. If the damage tends to be severe even surgery is recommended to repair the valves and treat the heart damage.

The best way to prevent Rheumatic Heart Disease is to adequately treat strep throat infections by completing the total course of antibiotics and other anti-inflammatory medications prescribed by the specialist.

A patient who is diagnosed with this condition or experiencing the symptoms mentioned above must consult a heart specialist in Hyderabad as soon as possible. Regular follow-ups to check the heart condition and following the guidelines and medications for an extended tie period is advised to reduce the risk of complications.

If you are looking for heart treatment in Hyderabad post the rheumatic fever to reduce the complication risk then you can directly contact the top heart surgeon in Hyderabad Dr Alla Gopala Krishna Gokhale here @Call9603040506