Team Heart,

Team Heart, Inc., collaborating to build a cardiac surgery program in Rwanda with the Government of Rwanda Rwanda Heart Foundation. Rheumatic Heart Disease is prevalent in Rwanda and if untreated can be prematurely life-ending. Building a comprehensive center to increase public awareness and provide the training of human resources to diagnose and intervene to provide care needed. Rheumatic Diseases is most often the cause of untreated strep throat, a preventable and is considered to be a neglected disease in most developing countries. It is found in 6-7/1000 of children in the one population examined by echocardiogram. The world shares the same burden of congenital heart disease, however, in Rwanda it is largely undiagnosed. There is not a cardiac center for children and only 2 pediatric cardiologists for the population of children. The world recognizes 8/1000 children born with heart disease, however Rwanda does not have the facilities for diagnosis and intervention. There are no pediatric cardiologists and no surgeons in the country. In addition, as the western lifestyles creep to Rwanda and an increase in life expectancy, there will be an increase in coronary heart disease. At this time only two cardiologist can intervene and both are located in Kigali. Very few hospitals even have an EKG machine are someone to read.