Chagas Disease - Kanta Medicos

Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis, is a neglected tropical disease caused by a group of parasites called Trypanosoma cruzi.

First discovered more than 100 years ago, Chagas disease continues to affect more than seven million people worldwide and is one of the most prevalent public health problems in Latin America. If left untreated, Chagas can cause irreversible damage to the heart and other vital organs.

6-7M 6-7 million people are affected worldwide

1 IN 10 Only 1 in 10 people are diagnosed

12,000 12,000 people die each year from Chagas diesease

About chagas disease

Chagas disease is found mainly in endemic areas of 21 continental Latin American countries. The most common way people are infected with Chagas is through the blood-sucking triatomine bugs, also known as ‘kissing bugs’ (or vinchuca, barbeiro, pito, chinche, chipo in different Latin American countries). The bugs typically live in wall or roof cracks of poorly constructed homes made of materials such as mud, straw, and palm thatch. They come out at night to feed on people’s blood while they’re sleeping, then defecate close to the bite. Their feces contain the parasite, which can then enter the person’s body when they inadvertently smear the bug’s waste into the bite or another skin break, the eyes, or the mouth.

The parasite can also be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy or childbirth, through contaminated food and beverages, blood transfusions, organ transplants, or laboratory accidents.

Air pollution is a key risk factor for cardiovascular disease and a significant contributor to the global burden of disease. In 2019, an estimated 6.7 million deaths, or 12 percent of all deaths worldwide, were attributable to outdoor or household air pollution. As many as half of these deaths were due to cardiovascular disease. Air pollution also increases the risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes, and respiratory diseases.

"Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, air pollution was an issue of growing concern due to its impact on people’s health, although it was frequently overlooked as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. COVID-19 has brought a new, deadly factor to the equation, and the time has come for the health community to speak up and take action."

Common sources of air pollution cut across many sectors and include residential energy for cooking and heating, vehicles, power generation, agriculture/waste incineration, and industry. Exposure to smoke from cooking fires causes 3.8 million premature deaths each year, mostly in low- and middle-income countries. Burning fuels such as dung, wood, and coal in inefficient stoves or open hearths produces a variety of health-damaging pollutants, including particulate matter (PM), methane, carbon monoxide, polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and volatile organic compounds (VOC). Burning kerosene in simple wick lamps also produces significant emissions of fine particles and other pollutants.

Air pollution is a complex and dynamic mixture of numerous compounds in gaseous and particle form, originating from diverse sources, subject to atmospheric transformation, and varying over space and time. Three common air pollutants, particulate matter (PM), ozone, and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), are the focus of most monitoring programs, communication efforts, health impact assessments, and regulatory efforts.

Evidence for impacts on cardiovascular disease is most consistent for particulate matter, which contributes significantly to the disease burden through its effects on ischemic heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, COPD, lower respiratory infections, Type 2 diabetes, pregnancy outcomes, and related infant mortality. Ozone primarily exacerbates respiratory disease, including COPD incidence and mortality, and has metabolic effects. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) serves as an indicator of traffic-related air pollution. Chronic exposure to NO2 is linked to childhood asthma incidence, while short-term variability is associated with asthma exacerbations and increased daily mortality counts.

Once entirely confined to the continental part of Latin America, Chagas has been increasingly detected in the United States, Canada, many countries in Europe, and some countries in Africa, the Middle East, and the Western Pacific over the last few decades. The epidemiological pattern of Chagas has also changed from a rural to a mostly urban disease, mainly due to population mobility, urbanization, and emigration..

Around 12,000 people die every year due to complications from Chagas disease, with only 1 in 10 being diagnosed. Of these, only a small percentage receive treatment. With an estimated 75 million individuals at risk of infection, Chagas remains a profound public health issue with significant social and economic burdens in Latin America and beyond.

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The Major activity of Kanta Medicos is WholeSale and Export, Sub-classified into human health activities and provides thousands of prescription medications on both brand name and generic labels.

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The Major activity of Kanta Medicos is WholeSale and Export, Sub-classified into human health activities and provides thousands of prescription medications on both brand name and generic labels.