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Millions Each Year Suffer from the Tropical Chagas Disease

If you plan to travel to Mexico, Central America or South America, you will want to take precautions against contracting Chagas disease. It's an inflammatory disease caused by a parasite and is spread through the excrement of the reduvid bug that has been infected with it. Also called the American form of Trypanosomiasis, Chagas disease develops in two phases - the acute phase in which the disease causes mild symptoms and the chronic phase which can cause serious health repercussions to the heart and other body functions.

Cause of Chagas Disease

The trypanosome cruzi parasite is the culprit which inhabits the reduvid bug. It picks up the parasite from biting and digesting blood from an infected animal. From there, the disease can be passed to humans. Because these reduvid bugs live in the mud as well as adobe and thatch huts which are made from the mud they inhabit. Therefore, the bugs become a part of the dwelling itself and come out at night to get their blood meal from their humans.

As the bug bites, they eliminate feces which contain the parasites that cause Chagas disease. These parasites can migrate into the body in a variety of ways such as through a break in the skin, and mucosal areas like the eyes, nose and mouth. Scratching a bug bite can also help the parasites along as well. Other ways you could become infected include eating food which is contaminated with the excrement from the reduvid bug, receiving tainted blood or even an organ transplant.

It is rare that visitors to these countries with the reduvid bug will develop Chagas disease. However, prolonged visits to rural areas like peace or medical missions will raise the risk as well as visiting or dwelling in the thatch or adobe huts which harbor the parasite-riddled bug.

Symptoms of Chagas Disease

In the acute phase of Chagas disease, the symptoms are not serious. They include fever, redness at the bite site, aching body, headache, nausea or vomiting, loss of appetite and even an enlarged liver or spleen.

Signs and symptoms

Chagas disease occurs in two phases: the acute phase and the chronic phase. Symptoms in either phase can range from mild to severe. Many people don't experience symptoms until the chronic stage. The chronic phase is sneakier and may not occur until up to 30 years after being bitten by an infected reduvid bug. In this case, the chronic stage may produce heart failure, swollen esophagus, cardiomypathy, irregular heartbeat and an enlarged large intestine which can cause a host of additional symptoms.

Treatment of Chagas

When a diagnosis of Chagas disease is made, usually by blood testing, doctors will focus on managing the symptoms while killing off the parasite causing the disease. If in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control may have to supply the medication to treat Chagas. It is not typically available by prescription, unlike its wider availability in the areas where the reduvid bug is indigenous.

Prevention is the key and includes avoiding muddy areas where the reduvid bug is prevalent. In addition, avoid sleeping in thatch or adobe huts. Travel with an insecticide that will kill the bugs should your sleeping arrangements require stays in these native huts. Also, use insecticide treated netting around your bed areas to prevent the bugs from looking for a meal of your blood.