SynthesisGlobal heart2025
Prevalence of Rheumatic Heart Disease in First-Degree Relatives of Index-Cases: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Synthesis in Global heart, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- Acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease in Latin America: a contemporary review of epidemiology.Lancet regional health. Americas · 2026Review
- Genetic Susceptibility to Rheumatic Heart Disease: A Narrative Literature Review Highlighting Evidence From African Populations and Research Gaps in Sudan.Health science reports · 2026Article
- The "Cairo Accord"- towards the eradication of RHD: revisited (2026).Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2026Review
- Association Between Serum 25(OH)-Vitamin D and Heart Involvement in a Single-Centre Cohort of Children with Acute Rheumatic Fever During the Years 2004-2024.Biomedicines · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is the leading cause of cardiac death in children, with over 300,000 annual fatalities. Immunological, genetic, and environmental factors contribute to an increased risk of RHD. It remains unclear whether first-degree relatives have a higher prevalence of RHD compared to the general population in the same region. Methods: We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of echocardiographic screening studies reporting the prevalence of RHD in family members of individuals with RHD or acute rheumatic fever. PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Lilacs databases were searched. RHD was classified as per the 2012 World Heart Federation criteria. Random-effects models assessed definite RHD prevalence in study groups. Results: Four of the 1,160 studies were included, with 776 first-degree relatives screened. Two studies were from Africa, one from South America, and one from Oceania. In the first-degree relatives of index cases, the prevalence of RHD was 7% (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.7-13). The control group, individuals screened with no known RHD cases in their family, had a lower prevalence than first-degree relatives (risk ratio [RR] 0.44, 95% CI 0.26-0.75). There was no difference in the prevalence of RHD among siblings and parents of cases. Conclusion: There is an overall prevalence of non-relatives from the respective region, which suggests that genetic predisposition may play a role. In future studies of RHD, the systematic screening of first-degree relatives should be considered with a better control group-socioeconomic, region, age, and sex-matched.
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