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[Chagas disease in blood donors]
1División Cardiología, Hospital Juan A. Fernández, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Insights
Longer exposure to the transmitting insect increases Chagas cardiopathy risk in asymptomatic individuals. Increased contact with infected triatomine bugs correlates with myocardial damage in Chagas
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Cardiology
- Epidemiology
Context:
- 100 asymptomatic blood donors with positive serological tests for Chagas' disease were studied.
- Participants lived in urban non-endemic areas but had prior residence in endemic regions.
- Exclusion criteria included pre-existing conditions like heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, alcoholism, or thyroid disease.
Purpose:
- To investigate the correlation between exposure to endemic areas and Chagas cardiopathy development.
- To identify risk factors associated with myocardial involvement in asymptomatic Chagas' disease patients.
Summary:
- The study divided 23 patients with myocardial involvement (Group I) and 77 without (Group II).
- Group I showed significantly longer residence in endemic areas (21.26 years vs. 15.56 years).
- Group I patients were more likely to recognize the transmitting insect and accept triatomine bite possibility.
Impact:
- Findings suggest prolonged exposure to the transmitting insect and higher infestation levels increase Chagas cardiopathy risk.
- Repeated inoculations are likely a consequence of increased exposure, leading to myocardial damage.
- This research highlights the importance of vector exposure duration in Chagas disease progression.
Abstract:
The study covers a group of 100 asymptomatic blood donors (14 women and 86 men) with positive serological test for Chagas' disease. All of them were living in urban non endemic areas at the moment of the test, but before they had lived in endemic areas. Patients with coronary heart disease, congenital heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, alcoholism or thyroid disease were not included. The sample was split in two groups: Group I: 23 patients (aged 41.95 +/- 10.52) with evidence of myocardial involvement at physical examination, chest roentgenograms and/or EKG, that we considered inherent to Chagas cardiopathy; and Group II: 77 patients (aged 38.36 +/- 10.57) without abnormal findings. There were no significant differences between the two groups in age, sex, type of house in the endemic area and familial history of Chagas' disease. We found significant differences in the period of residence in endemic areas of Chagas' disease (Group I 21.26 years +/- 7.21 vs Group II: 15.56 years +/- 5.91; p = 0.0015). Additionally, patients in Group I were more frequently able to describe or recognize the transmitting insect than patients in group II (p = 0.05) and to accept the possibility of a triatomide bite (p = 0.024). In group I, more people were coming from Santiago del Estero province, an area with a large bug infection. The results of our research suggest that the myocar-dial damage in patients with positive serological test for Chagas' disease is more likely when there is a larger exposure to the transmitting insect, and when its infestation is larger. All of this, probably, as a consequence of incoulation reiterations.