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Chagas Disease

Kissing Bug Disease (Research)

By Shae NicolePublished 6 years ago 7 min read
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Kissing Bug

Chagas Disease is a disease that is transmitted from insects to animals and people. Chagas Disease is a tropical parasitic disease caused by protozoan flagellate Trypanosoma cruzi found in insect vectors. The disease is mainly spread by the insect Triatominae or also known as the kissing bug via it’s feces/urine.

An estimated 10 million people are infected with T. cruzi worldwide. An estimated 100,000 infected immigrants carry this disease into the United States.

The disease is found in rural, poverty areas like Mexico, Central America, and South America. Chagas disease is present in 18 countries just on the American continents alone. In the Southern areas, Vectors live around the human population and their homes. In the Central American and Mexico areas, vectors live in dwellings and uninhabited areas. Chagas occurs in rural areas where vectors breed and feed on more than 150 species of domestic and wild mammals as well as human.

Based on records, the ancestor of the parasite Trypanosome cruzi was probably introduced to South America by bats about 7 to 10 million years ago. When the new world was first discovered, Chagas disease had already been established. Human activity over the environment has been the main cause of the spread of the disease since the beginning of the 20th century and now. The destruction of their natural habitats have caused these kissing bugs that carry the infection out of the forests and into areas where they do not belong. It’s caused them to go after more animals and has caused them to infect more than ever before.

The people who are at risk of contracting the disease are people living in rural areas, people living where there are high numbers of triatomine bugs. If people receive blood transfusions or organ transplant from a person who carries the infection they are also at risk. It is very rare to contract the disease while traveling South America, Central America, and Mexico due to the fact that travelers usually stay in well-constructed building and triatomine bugs are usually found in structures build with adobe or mud.

Trypanosoma cruzi is a species of parasitic euglenoid protozoan. It is a gram negative parasite that characteristically bore tissue in another organism and feed on blood and lymph. T. cruzi needs a host body and a haematophagous insect vector to achieve infection. T. cruzi has three morphological forms tyrpomastigote, epimastigote, and amastigote. T. cruzi is present in the circulation of the blood of the host. They are about 20 mm long and thin. They have irregularly shaped membranes, their nucleus are in the center of the organism. They contain a flagellum and are shaped as C’s or U’s.

Chagas disease is a vector-borne disease. The most common mode of infection is being bit by the kissing bug. While the insect bites a person and feeds on their blood, it defecates close to the bite. The parasite which lingers in the feces on the skin can then enter the bloodstream when the person scratches the bite due to irritation causing the skin to open up and resulting in a person infected with Chagas disease.

Other ways the parasite can enter a person’s body, causing Chagas disease, are through tissues by the eyes or mouth when bit close to the locations. Scratching a bite that is on your leg then rubbing your eyes can cause an even higher rate of you contracting the disease as well. The disease can be transmitted from mother to child during the pregnancy or after child birth. All children of infected mothers must be tested to insure that all children are properly taken care of.

Blood transfusions and organ transplants taken from infected people and given to people who are not infected can also cause a person to become infected with the disease. Screenings are being put into place to prevent transmission but implementation is taking longer in some places versus in other places.

Oral Transmission from ingestion of infected food or drinks is another way people are becoming infected. It is less common to obtain the disease through oral transmission but it is possible.

Accidental Laboratory Exposure is the last and most rare type of transmission. It is when a professional in the lab accidentally becomes infected due to an accidental bite or inoculated through a mucous membrane.

Chagas disease falls mainly on people in Central and Southern America, the disease however is spreading worldwide. Cases have been seen in Europe, japan, Africa and more. Chagas is also starting to become more of a problem in Texas and other States along the Gulf of Mexico.

Chagas disease is usually symptom-free, there are cases where there are mild symptoms that are not unique to Chagas disease. The symptoms can include fever, body aches, muscle pain, loss of appetite, rash, headaches, vomiting and more. It can cause mild enlargement of the liver, spleen, or even produce swollen glands. Swelling can occur around the area where the parasite entered the body.

There have been cases where children and adults have died from acute Chagas disease due to the fact that the disease causes severe inflammation and infection of the heart muscle, sometimes even to the brain. The acute phase can also be deadly to those with weak immune systems.

There are two phases to the disease; you have the acute phase, and the chronic phase.

If symptoms develop during the acute phase, they are spontaneous. Even though symptoms go away you may still have the parasite in your body and if that’s the case you now are in the chronic phase. In the chronic phase you will not have or develop visible symptoms. You now develop life threatening heart and digestive disorders. Chronic phase affects the nervous system, digestive system, and the heart. Chronic phase causes heart rhythm abnormalities and may result in sudden death. In chronic stage many become malnourished, and also obtain dementia which is confusion, and motor and sensory deficits. If left untreated, Chagas disease can be fatal. In most cases, it’s due to heart muscle damage.

Diagnosing Chagas can be made by observing the parasite in a sample of a blood smear under microscope examination. Various thicknesses of smears are made and examined closely. Diagnosing will only be determined after looking at medical findings, the surrounding and its population of the infected bugs, and by living in an endemic country. There are two different testing’s that are ran before determining the diagnosis.

The goals of treatment are to eliminate the parasite from the body using medical drug treatments. The other treatment is to help with all the other symptoms you have obtained at the same time. The two drugs used to treat Chagas disease are benznidazole and nifurtimox. The drugs more than likely will not be used at the same time. Usually your doctor will prescribe you one or the other depending on which they feel will benefit you. The younger the patient the more likely they are to cure faster. Babies have the greatest cure rate compared to the elderly. Babies exceed 90 percent of treatment cure rates within the first year, but the overall cure rate in general is at about 70 percent for the 18 and over patients.

The best way to avoid getting Chagas disease is to be informed and take all measurements that do exist. The first option is the kissing bug itself. To avoid the bug and its transmission of the parasite you should check your homes and your surroundings to make sure there is no infestation, if there are any signs report them to the local Chagas programmer and have your home fumigated. Mothers that are or may believe they are infected, you should know that there are not 100 percent guarantees that your baby will be free of the infection. But it is not 100 percent guaranteed that your baby will even come out of the womb with the disease. Treating the disease before pregnancy reduces the likelihood of infection to your child. It is also important to test your child when first born, then again at 9 months to make sure if the child did have it when born it is now gone.

People who are infected should not give blood except in very, very exceptional circumstances. Every person should go through screening to insure the safety of not only themselves but for the safety of others.

Informing medical staff on diseases should always be a concern. Organ donors must always inform staff and make appropriate decisions on whether to remain organ donors or not.

To travelers that are spending time in rural areas where kissing bugs are found you should always avoid sleeping in buildings with unplastered straw or adobe walls. Sleep in beds protected by mosquito nets, and always inspect where you are sleeping. Make sure conditions are suitable for your well-being and health.

There are no vaccines for Chagas disease. Vector control is the most effective method of protection.

Prevention of epidemics of the Chagas disease would be to promote identifying the disease and its symptoms, educating people on how to go to the doctors at the first signs of infection. We need to strengthen world epidemiological surveillance and information systems. We need to prevent transmission by blood transfusion and organ transplants in all countries. We also need to promote screening and testing to insure the safety of everyone all over the world.

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About the Creator

Shae Nicole

Hello! I Hope You All Love What I Focus My Mind And Studies On. I Am A Former Student Of Texas A&M University - Kingsville Where I Obtained A Biomedical Sciences Bachelors In May 2018. I Hope You All Enjoy My Research As Much As I Did!

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