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Kissing bugs -

It is carried by kissing bugs (scientific name triatomine), which crawl out at night and bite exposed human skin in order to feed on the victim’s blood.

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Infection -

The bugs then urinate and/or defecate near the site of the bite, so that when the victim scratches the area, the parasite enters their bloodstream.

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Symptoms -

Carriers of this nasty disease can present with a number of symptoms varying in severity. It disproportionately affects poor communities all over the world.

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Number crunch -

Recent estimates put the yearly number of Chagas deaths at 10,000, and for years the disease has gone largely under the radar.

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The status quo -

In 2022, health workers and researchers from around the world are hoping to raise awareness of Chagas disease, while at the same time reducing its prevalence.

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Rising to the challenge -

There are reasons for these proponents of change to feel optimistic, but they are definitely dealing with a difficult beast.

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Uphill battle -

Chagas disease is so threatening and destructive because it is extremely difficult to combat in terms of diagnosis, treatment, and aftercare.

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The problem with diagnosis -

Firstly, diagnosis is difficult because it requires the patient to undergo several tests in a lab staffed with knowledgeable health workers.

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The problem with diagnosis -

This is simply not possible in many areas where Chagas is rife, and it is estimated that only one in 10 people infected by the parasite is actually diagnosed.

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Silent illness -

This scenario is complicated by the fact that a person can actually carry the infection for up to 30 years, if it does not prove fatal first.

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Silent illness -

The disease is a slow burner and can even lead to heart failure years after the initial infection. It is for this reason that people sometimes refer to it as the ‘silent illness.’

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The problem with treatment - For those patients who are accurately diagnosed with Chagas disease, treatment options are few and those that do exist are unappealing, to say the least.

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The problem with treatment -

To be treated with benznidazole, for example, the patient must take the drug for 60 days, and it comes with some pretty terrible side effects.

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Straight from the horse's mouth -

According to Oscar Ledesma Patiño, a pediatric specialist who has been working on Chagas since the 1970s, the right drug simply “doesn’t exist.”

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Adding insult to injury -

And to make matters even worse, once a patient has gone through the ordeal of treatment, doctors can’t even tell them whether they have been cured.

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Adding insult to injury - This is because the immune system forgets the parasite; it can take up to 10 years for tests to confirm that it is really gone from the body for good.

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Making progress -

As mentioned earlier, those battling to raise awareness of and eliminate Chagas are gaining impressive ground, especially considering the level of resistance they face.

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The challenge -

In Argentina, for example, the use of resources to fight Chagas is uneven. In certain provinces, the funds allocated to combat the disease aren’t even spent.

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The impact of COVID-19 -

This problem was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic which put a stop to house-to-house bug spraying in some areas.

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Local resistance -

Even in areas that are well-resourced, the fight to eradicate Chagas is sometimes met with local resistance.

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Local resistance -

According to one BBC article, a social worker in Santiago del Estero had to visit an at-risk woman for two months before she’d let her fumigate her home.

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Rapid testing -

There is reason to have hope, however. There is already technology out there that can be used for rapid tests that would transform the diagnostic process.

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The DNDi - The Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi) is also trialing a shorter benznidazole treatment, one that lasts two weeks rather than two months. 

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Benznidazole - Benznidazole may be an imperfect treatment for Chagas, but shortening the course would make the side effects more manageable and hopefully increase uptake. 

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Other drugs -

New drugs are also in the pipeline, although it may well be years before these are available for use.

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Researching the kissing bug -

At the same time, researchers are looking into the kissing bug’s microbiome in order to better understand the bacterial environment required for the transmission of the infection.

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Researching the kissing bug -

This, in turn, may enable scientists to genetically manipulate the kissing bug and therefore block the development of the parasite.

Sources: (BBC)

See also: The race to rid the world of snake bite-related illness

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