[Chagas disease and primary arterial hypertension]

To evaluate the pressoric behaviour in chagasic patients in different stages of myocardial damage and to correlate Chagas' disease with arterial hypertension.

The arterial blood pressure of 644 chagasic patients surveyed in the HC-UNICAMP, with arterial hypertension or not, associated with the stage of myocardial dysfunction was evaluated. This group was compared with 370 hypertensive patients without Chagas' disease. Both were divided by sex and age. The results were evaluated by covariance analysis and the significance was pointed at p < 0.05.

The chagasic group presented a high prevalence of arterial hypertension with 16.8% in the clinical phase I, 27.8% in the phase II and 34% in the III. Both hypertensive and nonhypertensive chagasic patients had a significant drop in clinical phase I after the age of 30 years. The chagasic patients classified in phase II presented a high prevalence between 30-50 years, not associated with the pressoric behaviour and/or sex. The symptomatic myocardial dysfunction (phase III) was uncommon below 40 years old in chagasic group with hypertension or not, but presented a highest prevalence in male hypertensive chagasic patients above 50 years old.

The study demonstrated a more usual association of Chagas' disease and hypertension in patients with symptomatic myocardial dysfunction, above 50 years old. This find evidenciates the somatory and progressive effect of both diseases. It is possible that the pathogenic mechanisms of Chagas' disease contributed to the increment of the arterial blood pressure.