Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2010 May;9(5):533-42.
doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(10)70042-9.

Chagas disease and stroke

Affiliations
Review

Chagas disease and stroke

Francisco Javier Carod-Artal et al. Lancet Neurol. 2010 May.

Abstract

Chagas disease is a neglected infectious disease in the tropics and an emerging health problem in Europe and the USA. In the past decade, a link has been recorded between ischaemic stroke and Trypanosoma cruzi infection in several epidemiological studies, and an increase in stroke prevalence is expected with the ageing of the population infected with T cruzi in Latin America. Heart failure, mural thrombus, left ventricular apical aneurysm, and several types of cardiac arrhythmias are associated with stroke in Chagas disease. Stroke could also be the first sign of Chagas disease in asymptomatic patients and those with mild systolic dysfunction, so patients with stroke who are from endemic regions should be screened for T cruzi infection. The most frequent stroke syndrome seen in patients with Chagas disease is partial anterior circulation infarction. Stroke recurrence has been estimated to occur in 20% of patients, and secondary prevention measures include chronic anticoagulation in cardioembolic chagasic stroke. So far, no studies have been done to assess the effect of chagasic stroke on vascular dementia.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

Similar articles

Cited by