The ecology of Chagas disease in Chile

Chagas disease probably affects over half a million people in Chile, principally in rural communities in the fertile valleys of the arid 'norte chico' region, north of Santiago. The main domestic vector is Triatoma infestans, but Triatoma spinolai, although mainly in rocky sylvatic and peridomestic ecotopes, also invades houses. Since the Spanish invasion in the sixteenth century, and particularly during the last 100 years, the endemic region has suffered an ecological breakdown, largely due to excessive timbering and over-grazing, which has led to a denuded landscape with severe loss of agricultural productivity. This breakdown, combined with uneconomically sized farms and poor marketing, exacerbates the poverty of the rural communities. As in other similar areas of Latin America, the combination of poverty and poor education discourages improvements in housing which would reduce the risk of vector-transmitted Chagas disease. This paper reviews the historical and ecological background of the endemic region of Chile, both as a basis for further work, and as a point of comparison with other endemic areas. The review attempts to show how the current status of Chagas disease is likely to be maintained through its association with poor quality housing, poverty and ecological degradation, drawing parallels with other endemic++ areas and suggesting ways by which the ecological damage might be reversed.