Análise dos Aspectos Clínicos e Desafios do Diagnóstico da Doença de Chagas Entre os Anos de 2011 e 2021: Uma Revisão Integrativa

Abstract

Chagas disease (CD), also known as American trypanosomiasis, is caused by a flagellated protozoan parasite, Trypanosoma cruzi (T.cruzi). CD is considered by the World Health Organization (WHO) to be a neglected tropical disease that mainly affects populations with low socioeconomic factors. Clinically, CD presents in two clinical forms or phases: an acute phase and a chronic phase. In acute-phase Chagas disease (ACD), the clinical manifestation does not present in a specific manner, and in some cases, due to the absence of symptoms, the disease can evolve into an undetermined chronic form or progress to a digestive, cardiac, or mixed form. The diagnosis of CD is usually made by blood tests, and the diagnosis of the causative agent can be identified by laboratory methods of visualization of the parasite directly or indirectly, and by the presence of antibodies in the serum. This study aims to perform a literature review analyzing the clinical manifestations of Chagas disease in its different stages/phases, since it is a neglected disease and a serious public health problem with great social impact. The literature review was performed in the following databases: Lilacs, SciELO and PubMed. The present study evidenced that the transmission modes of CD are predominantly orally caused by the ingestion of food contaminated with T. cruzi, followed by vectorial transmission, with men being the most affected by the disease.