End the Neglect

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Posts Tagged ‘Latin America’

Chagas Disease Has Now Gone Global

April 27th, 2011

Photo courtesy of CDC

Chagas disease was once confined to exotic places and areas of Latin America. The disease, however, has now ventured into the developing world via travel and immigration. A new paper published by the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases talks about how Chagas has spread from Latin America to other parts of the world, take a read:

“Chagas disease, caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, was once thought to be an exotic disease, confined to endemic areas of Latin America and hence of little importance to anyone outside of these endemic regions, including most physicians and scientists. The impact of the lack of physician awareness and lack of scientific attention is undefined, but may contribute to the continued neglect of Chagas disease and the affected populations. Despite historical evidence and growing recognition of the spread of Chagas disease, the prevention and control of this disease outside of Latin America is only now being addressed.”

Millions in the Americans Are at Risk of Contracting Little-Known Disease

December 13th, 2010

By Ramon D’Bello, Pan American Health and Education Foundation (www.pahef.org)

While most of the Western world has never heard of Chagas disease, 200,000 new cases are reported every year and between 40 to 120 million people are at risk of infection in Latin America. Chagas disease is endemic in 21 Latin American countries and responsible for an average of 14,000 deaths each year. Estimates suggest that up to 11 million people are currently infected in the Americas.

How it Spreads

Trypanosoma cruzi, a parasite also known as T. cruzi, causes Chagas disease through vector-borne infection. Chagas disease is usually spread by the feces of insects called Triatomine bugs, commonly known as the “kissing” bug. The insects become infected after biting an infected animal or person. Once infected, insects become carriers and pass the disease parasites to their victims when it takes a blood meal and releases trypomastigotes in its feces near the site of the bite wound. Trypomastigotes enter the human body through the wound or through mucus membranes, such as the conjunctiva.

There are other means of transmission such as the consumption of food that has been contaminated by the Triatomine bugs, transplants, and in utero from a pregnant woman to her baby. People at highest risk of contracting the disease are often extremely poor and live in inadequate housing with little access to sanitation.

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River Blindness Transmission Cycle Broken in Ecuador

March 4th, 2010

Just this week the Ministry of Health and several other partners in the Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas (OEPA) have declared onchocerciasis transmission has been halted in Ecuador. As per World Health Organization policy, Ecuador must now monitor and verify elimination for the next three years. In 2008, the Pan American Health Organization restated its dedication to eliminating river blindness in the Americas by 2012 and this announcement is an important step towards achieving that goal.

Onchocerciasis is transmitted by the bite of the black fly and a small, bite-transmitted worm parasite. This parasite, Onchocerca volvulus, causes skin irritation and can cause loss of sight. The illness is known as river blindness because the black flies breed in fast-moving bodies of water near affected communities. In order to break the disease transmission cycle, implementing organizations utilize the common practice of mass drug administration (MDA). In MDA programs, safe and affordable (often donated) drugs are distributed to entire communities several times a year. For onchocerciasis treatments, the Merck produced drug Mecitzan (ivermectan) is used at no cost. In the last twenty years over eight million doses have been distributed across the region in endemic communities.

OEPA is a regional collaboration that was started in 1993 by The Carter Center to treat the more than 500,000 people at risk for this disease across Latin America. The partnership includes the Pan American Health Organization (World Health Organization), the pharmaceutical company Merck, the Pan American Health and Education Foundation (PAHEF), Lions Clubs International Foundation, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The OEPA program targets the six Latin American countries (Brazil, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela) where onchocerciasis is still a public health threat. Originally there were seven countries on this list, but Colombia achieved transmission interruption in 2008. In light of this week’s announcement, this list will be shortened to only five countries.

With a growing interest in the potential for elimination of onchocerciasis from Africa, the success of the programs in the Americas provides an experience base that can guide the next phase of the onchocerciasis program in Africa.