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Vaccine prevention of GAS infections and their immunological complications has been a goal of researchers for decades.

The desire for an effective vaccine arises from the large burden of disease caused by the bacterium, particularly rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease.

Acute rheumatic fever (ARF) and rheumatic heart disease (RHD) occur at very high rates among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

We review GAS transmission characteristics and prevention strategies, historical and geographical trends and report on the estimated global burden disease...

Acute rheumatic fever (ARF) is an important cause of heart disease in Indigenous people of northern and central Australia.

In Australia, rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is almost exclusively restricted to Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people with children being...

Globally, ARF and RHD cause more than a quarter of a million deaths and substantial disability each year.

The diagnosis of acute rheumatic fever relies on a combination of clinical evaluation and laboratory studies. Diagnosis is usually made using the Jones criteria, which have recently been updated in 2015.

The RHD Endgame Strategy: the blueprint to eliminate rheumatic heart disease in Australia by 2031 (the Endgame Strategy) is the blueprint to eliminate rheumatic heart disease (RHD) in Australia by 2031. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people live with one of the highest per capita burdens of RHD in the world.

Benzathine penicillin G has been used as monthly deep intramuscular (IM) injections since the 1950s for secondary prevention of acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease (RHD). Injection frequency and pain are major programmatic barriers for adherence, prompting calls for development of better long-acting penicillin preparations to prevent RHD.