Serological survey for Chagas' disease in school children in the Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil

• Published in: Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
• Main Authors: Walter B. Petana, José Rodrigues Coura, Henry P. F. Willcox
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT) 1976
• Subjects: Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0037-86821976000200007; https://doaj.org/article/807e504030d14592961d6b30aa84144a

A serological survey for Chagas' disease was carried out in school children in the Rio de Janeiro State, a zone considered as non-endemic for the infection. A total of 168 schools in 20 municipalities have been visited and 13,254 blood samples were obtained. The blood eluates were screened by the indirect fluorescence test (IFT), and all positive samples were checked and confirmed in sera by the complement fixation test (CFT). AH serologically positive children were subject to a clinical scrutiny, and the houses where the children lived have been searched for triatomine bugs. Only in two municipalities, Magé and Araruama, there was a significant number of children found positive. The total number of reactive samples by IFT and CFT from 13,004 blood samples screened was 143 (1.00 per cent). No serious clinicai symptoms suggestive of Chagas' disease have been found in any of the positive children, and no triatomine bugs were discovered in the dwellings where the children lived. The overall small percentage of children with positive serology postulates that the infection is not a serious health problem in the area investigated. It is recommended, however, to carry out a more detailed study in Magé and Araruama to find the reason for the relatively high percentage of serologically positive children encountered in these two municipalities.