MIL OSI – Source: Auckland Regional Public Health Service – Release/Statement
Headline: There were five in the bed… and Acute Rheumatic Fever > ARPHS
January 2017 Rheumatic Fever Update
In the 1930’s a study in army barracks found that if beds were spaced further apart (~1m between people) and ventilation improved, then the rate of rheumatic fever dropped.* In the 1980’s a link was found between sleeping in a bed with another person and rheumatic fever.**
What is the sleeping situation for people with rheumatic fever?
A New Zealand Study in 2012 found that 49% of people with Acute Rheumatic Fever (ARF) shared a bed with at least one other person, compared with 19% in the comparison group.***
Proportion of people who share a bed with someone
1 in 8 people diagnosed with ARF in 2012 shared a bed with three or more people.
Small houses with large or multiple families in them increase the chance that someone in the house will get a serious infectious illness from living in close quarters.
Here are some tips for keeping well in a busy and full household.
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* Glover JA. Milroy lectures on the incidence of rheumatic diseases. Lancet. 1930; 499-505.
** Adanja BH et al. Socioeconomic factors in the etiology of rheumatic fever. J Hyg Epidemiol Microbiol 112 Immunol. 1988; 32: 329-355.
*** Oliver JR, et al. Acute rheumatic fever and exposure to poor housing conditions in New Zealand: A descriptive study. J Paediatr Child Health. 2017 Jan 4. [Epub ahead of print].