Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Breaking the Silence of Chagas Disease

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

BUENOS AIRES, Nov 9 2009 (IPS) - One hundred years after the discovery of Chagas disease, endemic in many Latin American countries, the organization Doctors Without Borders (Médicos Sin Fronteras) staged a photo exhibit in Buenos Aires, as well as informational talks and concerts to raise awareness of the disease. “The idea is to shine the spotlight on a forgotten disease, which affects the poorest sectors and which kills 14,000 people each year” worldwide, Laura Calonge, of MSF Argentina, told Tierramérica.

The disease is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, which is spread by bites from insects that infest precarious and unhealthy housing in rural and peripheral areas.

Carlos Chagas, a Brazilian physician, identified the disease in 1909. It affects 10 to 15 million people. But it is “a silent disease because it doesn't cause symptoms until it's too late,” warned Calonge.

The MSF activities for breaking the silence are taking place this week in Buenos Aires.