Chagas' disease in the Brazilian Amazon: I - a short review Doença de Chagas na Amazônia Brasileira: I. revisão
At least eighteen species of triatominae have been found in the Brazilian Amazon, nine of them naturally infected with Trypanosoma cruzi or "cruzi-like" trypanosomes and associated with numerous wild reservoirs. Despite the small number of human cases of Chagas' disease described to d...
| Published in: | Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo |
|---|---|
| Main Authors: | , , , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Universidade de São Paulo (USP)
1994
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1590/S0036-46651994000400009 https://doaj.org/article/7ba70c28f33e400ab29f6de4b467f567 |
| Summary: | At least eighteen species of triatominae have been found in the Brazilian Amazon, nine of them naturally infected with Trypanosoma cruzi or "cruzi-like" trypanosomes and associated with numerous wild reservoirs. Despite the small number of human cases of Chagas' disease described to date in the Brazilian Amazon the risk that the disease will become endemic in this area is increasing for the following reasons: a) uncontrolled deforestation and colonization altering the ecological balance between reservoir hosts and wild vectors; b) the adaptation of reservoir hosts of T.cruzi and wild vectors to peripheral and intradomiciliary areas, as the sole feeding alternative; c) migration of infected human population from endemic areas, accompanied by domestic reservoir hosts (dogs and cats) or accidentally carrying in their baggage vectors already adapted to the domestic habitat. In short, risks that Chagas' disease will become endemic to the Amazon appear to be linked to the transposition of the wild cycle to the domestic cycle in that area or to transfer of the domestic cycle from endemic areas to the Amazon. Pelo menos dezoito espécies de triatomíneos foram encontradas na Amazônia brasileira, nove das quais infectadas com Trypanosoma cruzi ou semelhante ("cruzi-like"), associadas com numerosos reservatórios silvestres. A despeito do pequeno número de casos humanos da doença de Chagas descritos até agora na Amazônia brasileira, o risco que essa doença se torne endêmica é cada vez maior, pelas seguintes razões: a) desmatamentos e colonização descontrolados, alterando o balanço entre reservatórios e vetores; b) adaptação de reservatórios e vetores silvestres com T.cruzi ao peridomicílio, como única alternativa alimentar; c) migração de populações humanas infectadas com T.cruzi acompanhadas de reservatórios domésticos (cães e gatos) ou de vetores de suas regiões de origem na bagagem, já adaptados ao domicílio. Em resumo, o risco de que a doença de Chagas se torne endêmica na Amazônia brasileira está ligado à transposição ... |
|---|