Can you recover from Chagas disease?

Treatment. To kill the parasite, Chagas disease can be treated with benznidazole or nifurtimox. Both medicines are nearly 100% effective in curing the disease if given soon after infection at the onset of the acute phase, including the cases of congenital transmission.

Does Chagas disease go away?

If untreated, infection is lifelong. Acute Chagas disease occurs immediately after infection, and can last up to a few weeks or months. During the acute phase, parasites may be found in the circulating blood. This phase of infection is usually mild or asymptomatic.

What are the long term effects of Chagas disease?

Left untreated, Chagas disease later can cause serious heart and digestive problems. During the acute phase of infection, treatment of Chagas disease focuses on killing the parasite. In people who have chronic Chagas disease, it's no longer possible to kill the parasite.

Does Chagas affect the brain?

The involvement of the central nervous system (CNS) during human acute and chronic Chagas disease (CD) has been largely reported. Meningoencephalitis is a frequent finding during the acute infection, while during chronic phase the CNS involvement is often accompanied by behavioral and cognitive impairments.

How do you find out if you have Chagas disease?

During the acute phase of infection, parasites may be seen circulating in the blood. The diagnosis of Chagas disease can be made by observation of the parasite in a blood smear by microscopic examination. A thick and thin blood smear are made and stained for visualization of parasites.

KILLER DISEASES | How Chagas Disease Affects the Body

How long can you live with Chagas?

About 70-80% of people will remain asymptomatic for life and never develop Chagas-related symptoms. However, an estimated 20–30% of infected people will develop health problems years to decades later that are often fatal.

Should I be worried about Chagas disease?

Decades after being infected, about 30 percent of those who have Chagas develop serious health effects, including cardiomyopathy (disease of the heart muscle), heart failure, heart rhythm problems, and strokes. Less common are disorders that affect the digestive system.

Is Chagas disease permanent?

Trypanosoma cruzi infection is curable if treatment is initiated soon after infection. In chronic patients, antiparasitic treatment can potentially prevent or curb disease progression and prevent transmission, for instance, mother-to-child infection.

What does Chagas do to the heart?

Chagas cardiomyopathy represents the most frequent and serious complication of chronic Chagas disease, affecting about 20-30% of patients, potentially leading to heart failure, arrhythmias, thromboembolism, stroke and sudden death.

Is Chagas disease a concern in the US?

More than 5 million people worldwide have Chagas disease. In the United States, there are estimated to be at least 300,000 cases of chronic Chagas disease among people originally from countries of Latin America where Chagas disease is endemic.

How rare is Chagas disease?

Chagas disease is common in parts of Mexico, Central America, and South America where an estimated 8 million people are infected.

Why is Chagas a silent disease?

Chagas disease is prevalent among poor populations of continental Latin America but is increasingly being detected in other countries and continents. It is often termed as a “silent and silenced disease” as the infected majority have no symptoms or extremely mild symptom.

Do all kissing bugs carry Chagas disease?

Scientists have found that about 50% of kissing bugs are infected with the Chagas parasite. Kissing bugs are a 'vector' because they can carry a parasite that can make people and animal sick. The parasite is Trypanosoma cruzi, and it causes Chagas disease.

What is the mortality rate of Chagas?

Chagas disease causes approximately 10,000 deaths per year globally. Up to 30% of infected people develop symptoms. Chagas disease can cause: Stroke.

Can ivermectin cure Chagas disease?

Ivermectin and Chagas disease

To our knowledge, a connection between ivermectin and T. cruzi has never been described in the literature (in neither animal reservoirs nor humans). 1 17 To the best of our knowledge, there is currently no evidence that would justify CD treatment with ivermectin.

What organs are affected by Chagas?

In the heart, the disease can cause enlargement of the heart muscle, leading to heart failure. Other common problems are arrythmias and sudden cardiac arrest. In the gastro-intestinal system, there can be enlargement of the colon or the oesophagus, leading to digestive problems.

When should you get tested for Chagas?

Indications for Testing

Laboratory testing for Chagas disease is indicated in individuals who are at risk when clinical findings point to acute- or chronic-phase infection.

Can kissing bugs infest your house?

Triatomine bugs (also called “kissing bugs”, cone-nosed bugs, and blood suckers) can live indoors, in cracks and holes of substandard housing, or in a variety of outdoor settings including the following: Beneath porches. Between rocky structures. Under cement.

What US states have kissing bugs?

Most of the world's kissing bugs are in Central and South America and Mexico. They've also been found in the United States in the lower 28 states, with higher concentrations in Texas, Arizona and New Mexico. Kissing bugs have been spotted a far north as Delaware, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Why do we still have not a vaccine against Chagas disease?

Undoubtedly, most vaccination attempts yielded attenuated infections. However, attenuation does not equate with a cure, and we still do not have a sound diagnostic method for “cure” in Chagas disease, not only for asymptomatic human cases and for vaccinated animals but also for the testing of drugs.

How prevalent is Chagas disease in the US?

In the Americas, Chagas disease show an annual incidence of 30,000 new cases average, 12,000 deaths per year, and 8,600 newborns become infected during gestation. It is estimated that around 70 million people in the Americas live in areas of exposure and are at risk of contracting this disease.

Who is most likely to get Chagas disease?

Chagas disease is a disease caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. You're most at risk for Chagas disease if you have visited or traveled in rural Central or South America or been exposed to the blood products, or received organs, from someone infected with Chagas disease.

How long does kissing bug bite last?

Signs of kissing bugs

Kissing bugs can cause patches of bites, often around the mouth. The bites are usually painless, but they may swell and look like hives. Itching from the bites may last a week.

Can you donate blood if you have Chagas disease?

If you have ever been diagnosed with Chagas disease, you cannot donate blood.