Development of Diagnostics for Chagas Disease: Where Should We Put Our Limited Resources?

• Published in: PLoS neglected tropical diseases Vol. 11; no. 1; p. e0005148
• Main Authors: Picado, Albert, Angheben, Andrea, Marchiol, Andrea, Alarcón de Noya, Belkisyolé, Flevaud, Laurence, Pinazo, Maria Jesus, Gállego, Montserrat, Meymandi, Sheba, Moriana, Silvia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 05.01.2017; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Biology and Life Sciences; Blood & organ donations; Blood transfusions; Chagas disease; Chagas Disease - diagnosis; Chagas Disease - economics; Congenital diseases; Diagnosis; Diagnostic Tests, Routine - economics; Experts; Food contamination & poisoning; Funding; Hospitals; Humans; Latin Americans; Llatinoamericans; Malaltia de Chagas; Malalties parasitàries; Medical testing products; Medicine and Health Sciences; NGOs; Nongovernmental organizations; Parasitic diseases; Patients; People and places; Pharmaceutical industry; Tripanosoma; Tropical diseases; Trypanosoma; Viewpoints; Latin America
• ISSN: 1935-2735; 1935-2727; 1935-2735
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0005148

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), one of the milestones set by the London Declaration for Chagas disease--the interruption of Chagas disease transmission through blood transfusion in Latin America--was achieved in most countries (20 out of 21) in 2015 [1]. Antiparasitic treatments are highly effective in patients in the acute phase and reduce the risk of disease progression in patients in the indeterminate stage of the disease (patients chronically infected with T. cruzi but without evidence of cardiac or gastrointestinal disease) [4,5]. Because T. cruzi can be transmitted by a variety of routes [6] (i.e., vectorial transmission when T. cruzi parasites, which are released when the infected blood-sucking triatomine bugs defecate, enter the body via the skin break caused by the bug's bite or via other mucosa [e.g., oral transmission through contaminated food]; congenital infection; blood transfusion; and cell, blood, or tissue transplantation) and because the majority of people with chronic infection have never been tested and are not aware of their status, the development of new tools to diagnose Chagas disease is a priority.