[Acute rheumatic fever in New Caledonia. Clinical and epidemiological aspects]

Rheumatic fever is frequently encountered in tropical countries. Its distribution, incidence and consequences, notably on the heart, were studied in Nouvelle-Calédonie (South Pacific) on the basis of 76 patients with acute attack. The data were compared with those obtained in controls of the same age, sex and ethnic origin. Many patients developed carditis (often disabling), and relapses were frequent. The epidemiological data confirmed that rheumatic fever preferentially affects young subjects of both sexes and is more common among Melanesians and Polynesians, probably because of their lower socio-economic status.