STATUS AND TRENDS OF THE EPIDEMIC SITUATION OF GROUP A STREPTOCOCCAL (GAS) INFECTIONS IN RUSSIA IN RECENT YEARS

Aim. To study the main epidemiological manifestations of GAS infection in Russia and to assess the scale ofthe problem. Materials and methods. A retrospective epidemiological analysis of official statistical reporting data (f. 2, f. 12) about the incidence and prevalence of the most significant. forms of group A streptococcal infection in 2009 - 2016 was performed. Results. There was a slight decrease in the total incidence of GAS infection in the Russian Federation. On the average, 1.8 million people fell ill every year, of which 600,000 were children aged 0 - 14. There was no reliable trend in incidence of acute rheumatic fever (ARF) in 2009 - 2016 (2.0 per 100 000 population). The risk group is adolescents. The main proportion is adults (64%). In recent years the incidence of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) increases significantly (t=3.8, p