Epidemiological profile of acute Chagas disease in individuals infected by oral transmission in northern Brazil

Abstract

Introduction: Oral infection by Trypanosoma cruzi is currently the most important route of transmission of acute Chagas disease (ACD) in the North region of Brazil, and the reported outbreaks are usually related to ingestion of contaminated food, especially unprocessed açaí pulp. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed to analyze the epidemiological profile of individuals with suspected cases of ACD in the municipality of Breves, located in the state of Pará, Brazil. Therefore, notifications of suspected cases of ACD were collected from the Municipal Health Department of Breves from January 2007 to December 2017. Results: A total of 265 individuals were registered, and the majority were male (54.7%; 145/265). Age ranged from nine months to 79 years, with a greater number of notifications for individuals aged between 1 and 39 years (71.3%; 189/265). Most of them had a low level of education (74.3%, 197/265), were living in rural and urban areas (58.9%; 156/265 and 37.7%; 100/265, respectively). Infection occurred mainly in the domestic environment (96.2%; 255/265) through oral transmission (98.1%; 260/265). There were a greater number of notifications in November, December and January. Conclusions: These data showed that oral transmission of T. cruzi has become increasingly high in the study region, and health education programs need to be implemented as strategies to ensure good manufacturing practices of unprocessed food.

Perfil Epidemiológico Da Doença De Chagas Aguda No Brasil De 2011-2020

“…No município de Breves, no estado do Pará -Brasil, foram investigados 265 indivíduos com suspeita de infecção por T. cruzi no período de 2007 a 2017 (SAMPAIO et al, 2020). O perfil sociodemográfico desses indivíduos também mostrou que a maioria era do sexo masculino (54,7%) (SAMPAIO et al, 2020).…”

“…No município de Breves, no estado do Pará -Brasil, foram investigados 265 indivíduos com suspeita de infecção por T. cruzi no período de 2007 a 2017 (SAMPAIO et al, 2020). O perfil sociodemográfico desses indivíduos também mostrou que a maioria era do sexo masculino (54,7%) (SAMPAIO et al, 2020). A idade dos sujeitos variou de nove meses a 79 anos, com maior número de casos relatados entre 1-19 anos (38,1%) e 20-39 anos (33,2%) (SAMPAIO et al, 2020).…”

“…O perfil sociodemográfico desses indivíduos também mostrou que a maioria era do sexo masculino (54,7%) (SAMPAIO et al, 2020). A idade dos sujeitos variou de nove meses a 79 anos, com maior número de casos relatados entre 1-19 anos (38,1%) e 20-39 anos (33,2%) (SAMPAIO et al, 2020). Dessa forma, a maioria dos estudos analisados reforçam o perfil epidemiológico do indivíduo chagásico como homem de meia idade ou idoso.…”

Biomarkers and Their Possible Functions in the Intestinal Microenvironment of Chagasic Megacolon: An Overview of the (Neuro)inflammatory Process

“…In fact, enteric glial cells and their products participate in intestinal homeostasis, especially in neuronal survival. Thus, the reduction of these cells has already been suggested to be associated with infectious [115,116] and noninfectious intestinal diseases [117][118][119], which are characterized by 4 Journal of Immunology Research neurodegeneration, like in CD. Evidence shows a glial cell and neuron network owing to the production of NTs such as NGF, NT-3/4/5, and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF).…”

“…In Brazil, at least one million people are infected with T. cruzi, and most of them are in the chronic phase [2]. Recently, the cases of acute CD have increased in Brazil, mainly owing to the consumption of food contaminated with parasites, such as açai and sugarcane juice [3,4]. CD has two phases, acute and chronic.…”