However, because the disease can be transmitted to other people through contaminated blood and organs, most laboratories currently test donated blood and organs for transplantation for Chagas disease using avapro enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
The chronic phase of Chagas disease is also diagnosed using avapro pills tests, but such patients often have a specific physical condition that indicates that the patient has a chronic disease. Physical findings may include swelling of the extremities (peripheral oedema), ascites, pulmonary edema, and arrhythmias in patients with cardiac injury. Patients with a chronic phase predominantly affecting the gastrointestinal tract may experience weight loss, severe gastric reflux, esophageal erosions, inability to swallow normally, or an enlarged colon (megacolon) with an enlarged abdomen.
Various diseases can cause these physical disorders, so it is important to know that a patient has a positive blood test for T. cruzi before a diagnosis of Chagas disease can be made. Conversely, if such physical findings and a history of possible contact with carriers of avapro infection are present, then a blood test can be done to prove or rule out a diagnosis of Chagas disease in the chronic phase. Other tests such as electrocardiography and Holter monitoring or cardiac monitoring, endoscopy, esophageal manometry (measurement of pressure in the esophagus), or gastrointestinal motility studies are used to determine the functionality of the heart and gastrointestinal tissues in patients with chronic phase Chagas disease.
Can transmission of Chagas disease be prevented by a vaccine? There is currently no vaccine that can prevent Chagas disease. However, there are other ways available to everyone that help reduce the risk of infection or even prevent disease. Most Chagas disease experts agree that most infections can be prevented by improving poor or primitive living conditions.
Since blood transfusions can be attributed to the large amount of person-to-person transmission of T. cruzi, many blood banks around the world are now testing donated blood for antibodies to the parasite. If the blood test is positive, the blood is destroyed and donors are usually notified and asked not to donate blood in the future. Similar situations occur with organ donors. Such methods help prevent Chagas disease.
Read MoreIn general, the prognosis for those who do not develop the chronic phase of Chagas disease is generally good. People who are diagnosed and treated in the acute phase of the disease also tend to have a favorable prognosis. However, people who develop the chronic phase of Chagas disease have a worse prognosis due to the damage done to the heart and gastrointestinal tract. What are the complications of Chagas disease?
Read MoreMost of the complications that develop with Chagas disease occur during the chronic phase of the disease. Most complications are associated with changes in muscle tissue (muscle wasting, fibrosis, and inflammation) caused by parasites that multiply in the heart and gastrointestinal tract. Thus, heart failure and esophageal and colonic dilatation (megaesophagus and megacolon) are serious complications in Chagas disease. These changes can lead to weakness, difficulty swallowing, abdominal pain, and death. Other organs can also be affected by the disease (ureters, bile ducts, for example).
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