Chagas Disease (Essay Sample)

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Chagas Disease
Introduction
Named after Carlos Chagas, a Brazilian medical doctor who discovered the disease in 1909, Chagas diseases is a parasitic Infection CITATION Mil03 \l 1033 (Miles MW & Tyler KM, 2003). The malady is caused by trypanosoma cruzi a dangerous disease-causing parasite present in feces. Chagas disease is also referred to as American trypanosomiasis due to its prevalence in the Americas; and because of the presence of tratomine insects, which are the main carriers of the disease. Due to the rarity lack of public awareness, and scientific interest in the disease, it is categorized as one of the neglected parasitic diseases (NIP) by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) CITATION Cha11 \l 1033 (Herbet B. Tanowitz et al., 2011). The disease is mainly prevalent in Latin America owing to the high levels of poverty and low levels of hygiene. However, according to research the disease is stretching to North America because of the increasing temperatures caused by climate change (trypanosome cruzi is adapted to high temperature areas), and immigration. The lack of scientific attention and physical awareness of the disease has contributed massively to the increased incidences of the disease in the United States. CITATION Mil03 \l 1033 (Miles MW & Tyler KM, 2003)
Literature Review
Research has been done extensively in recent years purposeful of understanding variables concerning Chagas disease. The disease affects approximately 8-10 million individuals residing in the warm areas of South America, by the far the largest population of people affected; it additionally inflicts an estimated 30000-40000 people in warm weather countries like the United States, Australia, and Spain with a minute number of individuals from Africa and Asia. Chagas disease was responsible for approximately 10,000 deaths in 2010, while it caused an estimated 9,000 deaths in 1990 indicating a gradual increase in the deaths caused by the illness. Wide-ranging research has additionally revealed that the tratomine insects (kissing bugs) are not the only transmitters the disease but also by small mammals, which contract the disease from the previously mentioned insects CITATION Cha11 \l 1033 (Herbet B. Tanowitz et al., 2011).
Immigration has contributed hugely to the spread of Chagas disease around the globe; there have been massive immigration of South Americans to affluent places like Portugal, Japan, and Spain increasing the incidences of the disease in Europe and Asia. The increasing occurrences of the disease away from the natural endemic areas of South America has led to health risks in blood transfusion and organ transplants due to the lack of proper screening of the affliction CITATION Cha11 \l 1033 (Herbet B. Tanowitz et al., 2011).
Symptoms
The symptoms of the disease lack similarity in all individuals and modify over the course of the infection. It is important to note that some individuals may reveal significant severe symptoms in the early stages, while others may show no symptoms at all CITATION Mil03 \l 1033 (Miles MW & Tyler KM, 2003). The symptoms are different in accordance to the phase of the disease in the body; in the acute phase, you should expect symptoms like rash, swollen lymph nodes, head and body aches, nausea, fever, diarrhea, and liver enlargement.
In the intermediate phase of the infection, most individuals do not reveal any symptoms; approximately 60-70% of the infected do not show any symptoms whilst 30-40 percent showing a further increase in the symptoms witnessed at the acute phase. It is difficult for some individuals to realize they are infected in this phase due to the mild symptoms and they may end up not seeking medical attention. CITATION Mil03 \l 1033 (Miles MW & Tyler KM, 2003)
However, in the final stages of the disease, the infected begin showing extreme and life- threatening symptoms. The symptoms include the enlargement of the hearts ventricles, enlarged esophagus, enlarged colon, and gradual attack of gastrotestinal tract tissues. In addition, 10-20% of the infected are expected to experience symptoms like palpitations, cardiomyopathy, heart failure, chronic abdominal pains, chronic constipation, syncope, and irregular heartbeats CITATION Mil03 \l 1033 (Miles MW & Tyler KM, 2003).
The symptoms severity in the final phase depend on which organs the disease has attacked; if the disease has infected the heart and gastrotestinal tract the infected individual is at the risk of organ failure and death. The organ damage that occurs at the final stage is due to the persistent attack by the parasites on the organ tissues CITATION Mil03 \l 1033 (Miles MW & Tyler KM, 2003).
Diagnosis
Diagnosis of Chagas disease is done through multiple blood tests by testing for the antibodies produced by the body in an attempt to fight of the parasites. However, testing or diagnosis of the disease poses a difficult challenge due to the minute number of seriou...