Chagas disease in Italy: Breaking an epidemiological silence

Eurosurveillance
Volume 16, Issue 37, 2011

Chagas disease in Italy: Breaking an epidemiological silence (Article)

Angheben A.* , Anselmi M. , Gobbi F. , Marocco S. , Monteiro G. , Buonfrate D. , Tais S. , Talamo M. , Zavarise G. , Strohmeyer M. , Bartalesi F. , Mantella A. , di Tommaso M. , Aiello K.H. , Veneruso G. , Graziani G. , Ferrari M.M. , Spreafico I. , Bonifacio E. , Gaiera G. , Lanzafame M. , Mascarello M. , Cancrini G. , Albajar-Viñas P. , Bisoffi Z. , Bartoloni A.

^a Centre for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy, HEalth status of MIgrants from Latin America, United States
^b Centre for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy, HEalth status of MIgrants from Latin America, United States
^c Centre for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy, HEalth status of MIgrants from Latin America, United States
^d Centre for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy
^e Centre for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy
^f Centre for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy, HEalth status of MIgrants from Latin America, United States
^g Service of Epidemiology and Laboratory for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy
^h Infectious Disease Unit, G. Rummo Hospital, Benevento, Italy
ⁱ Paediatric Division, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy
^j HEalth status of MIgrants from Latin America, United States, Infectious and Tropical Diseases Unit, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
^k Infectious and Tropical Diseases Unit, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
^l Infectious and Tropical Diseases Unit, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
^m Obstetric and Gynaecologic Department, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
ⁿ Obstetric and Gynaecologic Department, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
^o Infectious Diseases Unit, Anna Meyer Children's University Hospital, Florence, Italy
^p Immunohaematology and Transfusion Unit, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
^q Obstetrics and Gynaecology Clinic, L. Mangiagalli Hospital, Milan, Italy
^r Obstetrics and Gynaecology Clinic, L. Mangiagalli Hospital, Milan, Italy
^s Obstetrics and Gynaecology Division, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy
^t Infectious Diseases Division, San Raffaele Hospital, Milan, Italy
^u Infectious Diseases Division, G.B. Rossi University Hospital, Verona, Italy
^v Infectious Diseases Division, G.B. Rossi University Hospital, Verona, Italy
^w Public Health Sciences Department, La Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
^x WHO Programme on Control of Chagas disease, Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
^y Centre for Tropical Diseases, Sacro Cuore - Don Calabria Hospital, Negrar, Italy, HEalth status of MIgrants from Latin America, United States
^z HEalth status of MIgrants from Latin America, United States, Infectious and Tropical Diseases Unit, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy

Abstract

Chagas disease, a neglected tropical disease that due to population movements is no longer limited to Latin America, threatens a wide spectrum of people (travellers, migrants, blood or organ recipients, newborns, adoptees) also in non-endemic countries where it is generally underdiagnosed. In Italy, the available epidemiological data about Chagas disease have been very limited up to now, although the country is second in Europe only to Spain in the number of residents from Latin American. Among 867 at-risk subjects screened between 1998 and 2010, the Centre for Tropical Diseases in Negrar (Verona) and the Infectious and Tropical Diseases Unit, University of Florence found 4.2% patients with positive serology for Chagas disease (83.4% of them migrants, 13.8% adoptees). No cases of Chagas disease were identified in blood donors or HIV-positive patients of Latin American origin. Among 214 Latin American pregnant women, three were infected (resulting in abortion in one case). In 2005 a case of acute Chagas disease was recorded in an Italian traveller. Based on our observations, we believe that a wider assessment of the epidemiological situation is urgently required in our country and public health measures preventing transmission and improving access to diagnosis and treatment should be implemented.

Author Keywords

[No Keywords available]

Index Keywords

immigrant mass screening human infection rate risk assessment parasite control travel controlled study Human immunodeficiency virus infected patient Aged geographic distribution blood donor adopted child Adolescent male preschool child female high risk population Article parasite prevalence adult infection risk Italy parasite transmission pregnant woman Chagas Disease seroprevalence disease association blood transfusion Child

Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-80053066448&partnerID=40&md5=34215addb72457517230ea4dcf7ec1cf

ISSN: 1025496X

Cited by: 37

Original Language: English