-
PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases Dec 2022Chagas is a complex and multidimensional socio-environmental health phenomenon, in which different components converge and interact. Historically, this disease was...
BACKGROUND
Chagas is a complex and multidimensional socio-environmental health phenomenon, in which different components converge and interact. Historically, this disease was associated with insect vectors found in the rural environment. However, in the Americas, we are currently facing a new paradigm, in which different scenarios allow maintaining the vectorial transmission of the parasite through triatomine populations that either occasionally enter the dwellings or colonize urban environments.
METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS
Records of scientific reports available in the PubMed and LILACS search engines were retrieved, using three criteria according to the main triatomine genera of epidemiological importance and to the general scientific production on Chagas disease in urban contexts. Results showed that records on the occurrence of vectors in urban dwellings began to increase in the last three decades. Results also showed that the main species of triatomines collected inside dwellings (18 in total) belong mainly to the genera Triatoma and Panstrongylus, with most species (16/18, 88.8%) infected with the parasite, and that infestation of triatomine species occurs in all types of cities (small, medium and large, including megalopolises), from Argentina to the USA.
CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE
Urban Chagas represents a new challenge that adds a different dimension to the problem of Chagas disease due to the particular characteristics of the lifestyle in urban agglomerates. The new scenario will require adaptations of the programs of control of vector to this shift from rural to urban settlements.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Trypanosoma cruzi; Chagas Disease; Triatoma; Panstrongylus; Cities
PubMed: 36516183
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0011003 -
Memorias Do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz 2021Panstrongylus geniculatus (Latreille, 1811) is the triatomine with the largest geographic distribution in Latin America. It has been reported in 18 countries from...
Panstrongylus geniculatus (Latreille, 1811) is the triatomine with the largest geographic distribution in Latin America. It has been reported in 18 countries from southern Mexico to northern Argentina, including the Caribbean islands. Although most reports indicate that P. geniculatus has wild habitats, this species has intrusive habits regarding human dwellings mainly located in intermediate deforested areas. It is attracted by artificial light from urban and rural buildings, raising the risk of transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi. Despite the wide body of published information on P. geniculatus, many knowledge gaps exist about its biology and epidemiological potential. For this reason, we analysed the literature for P. geniculatus in Scopus, PubMed, Scielo, Google Scholar and the BibTriv3.0 databases to update existing knowledge and provide better information on its geographic distribution, life cycle, genetic diversity, evidence of intrusion and domiciliation, vector-related circulating discrete taxonomic units, possible role in oral T. cruzi transmission, and the effect of climate change on its biology and epidemiology.
Topics: Animals; Biology; Chagas Disease; Ecology; Genes, Insect; Genetic Variation; Genotype; Geography; Humans; Insect Vectors; Latin America; Panstrongylus; Phylogeny; Triatoma; Trypanosoma cruzi
PubMed: 33656141
DOI: 10.1590/0074-02760200528 -
What are we talking about when we talk about education and Chagas? A systematic review of the issue.Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta.... May 2020More than 110 years has passed since the first publications on Chagas disease, and it still urges the necessity of understanding it as a complex socioenvironmental...
More than 110 years has passed since the first publications on Chagas disease, and it still urges the necessity of understanding it as a complex socioenvironmental issue in which components of diverse nature converge and interact beyond the biomedical and epidemiological aspects. The current scenarios of the issue, both rural and Latin American as urban and global, demand that the education on Chagas disease include all possible contexts: where there are insect vectors and where there are not; inside and outside Latin America; in rural, periurban, and urban areas; in formal and non-formal educational environments. We consider essential the requirement of both an integral approach that overcomes the biomedical aspect to include the multidimensionality of the issue and a dialogical educational perspective that allows individuals and communities to analyze, decide, and lead contextualized prevention and promotion actions regarding their health. In this study, we surveyed, described, and critically analyzed studies approaching the link education-Chagas disease in scientific publications from the last 15 years. We aimed at contributing methodological-theoretical elements to (re)think the development of educational research and experiences that truly help facing this issue. From the electronic search of scientific literature in 6 databases, we found 426 articles, out of which we selected 25. We incorporated 10 articles from other sources to this initial corpus and performed both qualitative and quantitative analyses over the total number [35] to characterize the studied works in general, focusing on the conceptions on the Chagas disease issue and the underlying health education approaches.
Topics: Animals; Biomedical Research; Chagas Disease; Communicable Disease Control; Disease Eradication; Disease Vectors; Global Burden of Disease; Humans; Neglected Diseases; Patient Education as Topic; Politics; Publications; Triatoma; Trypanosoma cruzi
PubMed: 32006572
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbadis.2020.165691 -
Parasites & Vectors Jun 2019The heterogeneity of Trypanosoma cruzi infection rates among triatomines insects and animal reservoirs has been studied in independent studies, but little information... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND
The heterogeneity of Trypanosoma cruzi infection rates among triatomines insects and animal reservoirs has been studied in independent studies, but little information has been systematised to allow pooled and comparative estimates. Unravelling the main patterns of this heterogeneity could contribute to a further understanding of T. cruzi transmission in Colombia.
METHODS
A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Medline, LILACS, Embase, Web of Knowledge, Google Scholar and secondary sources with no filters of language or time and until April 2018. Based on selection criteria, all relevant studies reporting T. cruzi infection rates in reservoirs or triatomines were chosen. For pooled analyses, a random effects model for binomial distribution was used. Heterogeneity among studies is reported as I. Subgroup analyses included: taxonomic classification, ecotope and diagnostic methods. Publication bias and sensitivity analyses were performed.
RESULTS
Overall, 39 studies reporting infection rates in Colombia were found (22 for potential reservoirs and 28 for triatomine insects) for a total sample of 22,838 potential animals and 11,307 triatomines evaluated for T. cruzi infection. We have found evidence of 38/71 different animal species as potential T. cruzi reservoirs and 14/18 species as triatomine vectors for T. cruzi. Among animals, the species with the highest pooled prevalence were opossum (Didelphis marsupialis) with 48.0% (95% CI: 26-71%; I = 88%, τ = 0.07, P < 0.01) and domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) with 22.0% (95% CI: 4-48%; I = 96%, τ = 0.01, P < 0.01). Among triatomines, the highest prevalence was found for Triatoma maculata in the peridomestic ecotope (68.0%, 95% CI: 62-74%; I = 0%, τ = 0, P < 0.0001), followed by Rhodnius prolixus (62.0%, 95% CI: 38-84%; I = 95%, τ = 0.05, P < 0.01) and Rhodnius pallescens (54.0%, 95% CI: 37-71%; I = 86%, τ = 0.035, P < 0.01) in the sylvatic ecotope.
CONCLUSIONS
To our knowledge, this is the first systematic and quantitative analyses of triatomine insects and potential animal reservoirs for T. cruzi infection in Colombia. The results highlight a marked heterogeneity between species and provide initial estimates of infection rates heterogeneity.
Topics: Animals; Animals, Domestic; Binomial Distribution; Chagas Disease; Colombia; Disease Reservoirs; Dogs; Genotype; Insect Vectors; Opossums; Prevalence; Rhodnius; Triatoma; Trypanosoma cruzi
PubMed: 31221188
DOI: 10.1186/s13071-019-3541-5 -
Revista Da Sociedade Brasileira de... Jun 2012This study consists of a broad review on what is known and what should be improved regarding knowledge of Chagas disease, not only through analysis on the main studies... (Review)
Review
This study consists of a broad review on what is known and what should be improved regarding knowledge of Chagas disease, not only through analysis on the main studies published on the topics discussed, but to a large extent based on experience of this subject, acquired over the past 50 years (1961-2011). Among the subjects covered, we highlight the pathogenesis and evolution of infection by Trypanosoma cruzi, drugs in use and new strategies for treating Chagas disease; the serological tests for the diagnosis and the controls of cure the infection; the regional variations in prevalence, morbidity and response to treatment of the disease; the importance of metacyclogenesis of T. cruzi in different species of triatomines and its capacity to transmit Chagas infection; the risks of adaptation of wild triatomines to human dwellings; the morbidity and need for a surveillance and control program for Chagas disease in the Amazon region and the need to prioritize initiatives for controlling Chagas disease in Latin America and Mexico and in non-endemic countries, which is today a major international dilemma. Finally, we raise the need for to create a new initiative for controlling Chagas disease in the Gran Chaco, which involves parts of Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Chagas Disease; Geography; Insect Control; Insect Vectors; Latin America; Mexico; Triatominae; Trypanosoma cruzi
PubMed: 22760123
DOI: 10.1590/s0037-86822012000300002 -
PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases Jun 2011Vector control has substantially reduced Chagas disease (ChD) incidence. However, transmission by household-reinfesting triatomines persists, suggesting that... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Vector control has substantially reduced Chagas disease (ChD) incidence. However, transmission by household-reinfesting triatomines persists, suggesting that entomological surveillance should play a crucial role in the long-term interruption of transmission. Yet, infestation foci become smaller and harder to detect as vector control proceeds, and highly sensitive surveillance methods are needed. Community participation (CP) and vector-detection devices (VDDs) are both thought to enhance surveillance, but this remains to be thoroughly assessed.
METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS
We searched Medline, Web of Knowledge, Scopus, LILACS, SciELO, the bibliographies of retrieved studies, and our own records. Data from studies describing vector control and/or surveillance interventions were extracted by two reviewers. Outcomes of primary interest included changes in infestation rates and the detection of infestation/reinfestation foci. Most results likely depended on study- and site-specific conditions, precluding meta-analysis, but we re-analysed data from studies comparing vector control and detection methods whenever possible. Results confirm that professional, insecticide-based vector control is highly effective, but also show that reinfestation by native triatomines is common and widespread across Latin America. Bug notification by householders (the simplest CP-based strategy) significantly boosts vector detection probabilities; in comparison, both active searches and VDDs perform poorly, although they might in some cases complement each other.
CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE
CP should become a strategic component of ChD surveillance, but only professional insecticide spraying seems consistently effective at eliminating infestation foci. Involvement of stakeholders at all process stages, from planning to evaluation, would probably enhance such CP-based strategies.
Topics: Animals; Chagas Disease; Community Participation; Humans; Insect Control; Population Surveillance; Triatominae
PubMed: 21713022
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001207