Is population-based screening for rheumatic heart disease precluded by the Cairo accord? Echocardiography...and beyond.

In the 2017, "Cairo Accord on Rheumatic Heart Disease-From Molecules to The Global Community" experts from endemic areas enumerated an approach to reduce the population burden of rheumatic heart disease. The 10 key recommendations include immediate logistical objectives as well as domains for further study. Echocardiographic population screening programs were relegated to research alone. Given the large body of supporting data, relegating echo screening to an investigational modality is an opportunity lost.