Seven out of ten people are unaware of having Chagas disease in the Americas

Seven out of ten people with Chagas disease in the Americas are unaware that they suffer from this potentially deadly parasitic disease, said the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) this Wednesday (13th).

According to the entity, the disease affects between 6 million and 8 million people in Mexico, Central and South America.

The disease caused by the microorganism trypanosoma crossed and which honors the Brazilian public health specialist Carlos Chagas, is transmitted by insects known as barbers, blood transfusion or organ transplantation, consumption of contaminated food and during pregnancy and childbirth.

Between 2% and 8% of pregnant women infected with Chagas disease can transmit it to the baby. This is the main route of infection and spread in countries that have controlled the other types of transmission, improving their housing standards and adopting universal screening in blood banks, according to PAHO.

It is estimated that, in the long term, up to 30% of the chronically ill may develop complications, with possible irreversible and chronic consequences for the digestive system and the heart.

Detected in time and in its initial phase, the disease can be cured or improve its clinical course, and, in the chronic phase, the treatment can slow down or delay its progress, says the entity.

The disease is endemic in 21 countries in the Americas, where about 70 million people live at risk of contracting it. However, the numbers have improved in recent years. More than 10,000 people die annually in the region from the disease, compared with around 45,000 in the 1990s.

The efforts made by the countries of the Americas show that ending the disease is possible, but “it is necessary to redouble actions to prevent it, detect it, treat it and interrupt the chain of transmission”, says Marcos Espinal, director of of communicable diseases of PAHO, one day before the World Day of Chagas Disease, celebrated this Thursday (14).