World will learn how little Whangaroa beat rheumatic fever

A leading Northland public health expert is heading to Portugal to tell the world how the small community of Whangaroa virtually stamped out rheumatic fever.
Dr Jonathan Jarman, Northland medical officer of health, will deliver a presentation on the Whangaroa programme at the 12th international congress of infectious disease in Lisbon next month.
The community project was a response to the high number of Whangaroa children with rheumatic fever, a childhood illness that can permanently damage the heart. It is an inflammatory reaction stemming from a streptococcal throat infection.
Health workers began swabbing the throats of Whangaroa children with sore throats on February 24, 2002. Those children who tested positive were prescribed antibiotics.
The last case diagnosed in the area was March 5, 2002, which is a dramatic turnaround considering 14 cases were notified between 1991 and 2000.
"In the last four years we estimate we have prevented six children from developing rheumatic fever," Dr Jarman said.
He stressed that the successful programme was a joint effort involving the area's primary health organisation, doctors and iwi health provider.
"The community approached us because they were very concerned about their levels of rheumatic fever. Just about every family in Whangaroa had a family member with rheumatic fever or knew someone with rheumatic fever."
The programme is continuing even though there have been no new cases in four years.
"If we stopped, there's every likelihood that the rheumatic fever would return. We are looking at putting a similar programme in Kaitaia and Hokianga."
Dr Jarman expected conference-goers to be interested in Whangaroa's success because of a lack of research into what is a very rare disease in developed countries.
Dr Jarman will attend the conference as part of his continuing medical education.