SciELO - Scientific Electronic Library Online

 
vol.87 issue3Eating behavior disorders difficult to treat: A clinical case author indexsubject indexarticles search
Home Pagealphabetic serial listing  

Services on Demand

Journal

Article

Related links

Share


Archivos de Pediatría del Uruguay

Print version ISSN 0004-0584On-line version ISSN 1688-1249

Abstract

AMORIN, Belén  and  PEREZ, Leticia. Second generation congenital Chagas disease in Uruguay: First symptomatic case described in the country. Arch. Pediatr. Urug. [online]. 2016, vol.87, n.3, pp.245-252. ISSN 0004-0584.

Congenital Chagas disease occurs when an infected pregnant woman transmits the parasite to the fetus, a situation that can happen at any stage of disease and time of pregnancy. It is the only transmission mechanism currently present in Uruguay, with an incidence close to 4%. Most infected infants are born asymptomatic and 10 to 40% have symptoms that are indistinguishable from other infections’ vertical transmission. Prematurity, low birth weight, hepatosplenomegaly and hematological disorders are the most common symptoms. Diagnosis is a challenge in those areas where there is no current compulsory screening for pregnant women in spite of the disease being considered endemic. The study presents the case of an infant from Paysandú, coming from a low socio-economic environment, which was a severe preterm, and presented hematologic disorders of the three series at birth and hepatosplenomegaly, which caused many studies. However, there was no suspicion of the disease until the infant was five months old when re-entering by other pathology. Infection at nine months is confirmed by three different serological techniques. Nifurtimox therapy is indicated for two months and at twenty six and thirty six months of life the patient presents negative serology. A high level of suspicion is needed in order to diagnose the disease in infants with signs of congenital infection without maternal serology. It is important to know that treatment before the first year of life has excellent response and prevents chronic sequelae that can be disabling in adulthood.

Keywords : CHAGAS DISEASE; VERTICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASE TRANSMISSION; NEWBORN.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )

 

Creative Commons License All the contents of this journal, except where otherwise noted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License