Chagas disease, dem sanso know as American trypanosomiasis, be a tropical parasitic disease wey Trypanosoma cruzi cause. E mostly be spread by insects insyd de subfamily Triatominae, dem know as "kissing bugs". De symptoms change thru out de infection. Insyd de early stage, symptoms be typically either no be present anaa mild den fi include fever, swollen lymph nodes, headaches, anaa swelling at de site of de bite. After four to eight weeks, untreated individuals enter de chronic phase of disease, wich insyd most cases no dey result in further symptoms. Up to 45% of people plus chronic infections develop heart disease 10–30 years after de initial illness, wich fi lead to heart failure. Digestive complications, wey dey include an enlarged esophagus anaa an enlarged colon, sanso fi occur insyd up to 21% of people, den up to 10% of people fi experience nerve damage.
T. cruzi commonly be spread to humans den oda mammals by de kissing bug's bite wound den infected feces. De disease sanso fi be spread thru blood transfusion, organ transplantation, consuming food anaa drink contaminated plus de parasites, den vertical transmission (from a mommie to ein baby). Diagnosis of early disease be by finding de parasite insyd de blood using a microscope anaa detecting ein DNA by polymerase chain reaction. Chronic disease be diagnosed by finding antibodies for T. cruzi insyd de blood.
Prevention dey focus on eliminating kissing bugs den avoiding dema bites. Dis fi involve de use of insecticides anaa bed-nets. Oda preventive efforts dey include screening blood used for transfusions. Early infections be treatable plus de medications benznidazole anaa nifurtimox, wich usually cure de disease if given shortly after de person be infected, buh cam be less effective de longer a person get Chagas disease. Wen dem use insyd chronic disease, medication fi delay anaa prevent de development of end-stage symptoms. Benznidazole den nifurtimox often cause side effects, wey dey include skin disorders, digestive system irritation, den neurological symptoms, wich fi result in treatment being discontinued. New drugs for Chagas disease be under development, den while experimental vaccines be studied insyd animal models, dem no develop a human vaccine develop.
E be estimated say 6.5 million people, mostly insyd Mexico, Central America den South America, get Chagas disease as of 2019, wey dey result in approximately 9,490 annual deaths. Most people plus de disease be poor, wey most no realize dem be infected. Large-scale population migrations carry Chagas disease to new regions, wich include de United States den chaw European countries. De disease dey affect more dan 150 types of animals. From 2000–2018, na dem report 29 confirmed locally-acquired cases of Chagas disease insyd eight US states, wey dey lead to calls to reclassify Chagas as endemic to de US.
De disease first be described insyd 1909 by Brazilian physician Carlos Chagas, after whom dem name. Chagas disease be classified as a neglected tropical disease.
