First described by the Brazilian doctor Carlos Chagas, this parasitic disease is found almost exclusively on the American continent, though increased global travel has led to cases being reported in the US and Europe. This potentially fatal condition damages the heart, nervous and digestive systems.
The disease is transmitted by blood sucking insects that live in cracks in the walls and roofs of mud and straw housing, common in rural areas and poor urban slums in Latin America. People can be infected but show no symptoms for years. Developing over time, chronic Chagas causes irreversible damage to the heart, oesophagus and colon, shortening life expectancy by an average of ten years. Heart failure is a common cause of death for adults with Chagas.
Treatment must occur in early stages of the infection, and drugs are only effective in the acute and asymptomatic stage of the disease in children. Diagnosis is complicated, with doctors needing to perform two or three blood tests to determine whether a patient is infected with the parasite. There are few drugs developed to treat the disease and the current line of treatment can be toxic, taking one to two months to complete. Apart from managing symptoms, there is no treatment for chronic Chagas in adults.
MSF Chagas programmes in Bolivia and Guatemala focus on education, preventive measures and screening and treatment for children. MSF is also urging for more research and development on Chagas through its Access to Essential Medicines Campaign. MSF treated 556 people for Chagas in 2006.