TY - JOUR
KW - Trypanosoma cruzi
KW - Chagas disease
KW - Non-endemic area
KW - Chagas Cardiomyopathy
KW - Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs)
KW - Benznidazole
AU - Bea-Serrano C
AU - de Gracia-León AI
AU - Llenas-García J
AU - Vela-Bernal S
AU - Belmonte-Domingo A
AU - Pinto-Pla C
AU - Ferrer-Ribera A
AU - Galindo MJ
AU - Alcaraz MJ
AU - Oltra Sempere MR
AB - <jats:p>This retrospective cohort study aimed to assess clinical and epidemiological characteristics, treatment outcomes, and predictors of serological cure in patients with chronic Chagas disease in a non-endemic setting. All individuals aged ≥16 years with confirmed infection and evaluated at a tertiary hospital in Spain from 2008 to 2023 were included. Most of the 107 participants were women (78.5%) and Bolivian-born (99.1%). Digestive and cardiac involvement were identified in 32.7% and 17.8% of cases, respectively. Cardiac symptoms were significantly associated with the diagnostic findings of cardiac involvement (odds ratio [OR] 3.0, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1–8.2), whereas digestive symptoms did not correlate with imaging abnormalities (OR 0.7, 95% CI 0.3–1.6). Antiparasitic treatment, usually benznidazole, was initiated in 69% of patients and led to adverse events in 66.2%, with treatment discontinuation in 25.7%. Only 8.1% of treated patients achieved serological cure after a median 26 months, with obesity emerging as the only independent predictor (adjusted OR 31.0, 95% CI 3.7–261.2). Cardiac progression occurred in 9.3% of patients despite treatment. Although 59.8% were lost to follow-up, the cohort maintained a median follow-up of 27 months. These findings underscore the need for improved treatment strategies and sustained clinical monitoring in non-endemic settings.</jats:p>
BT - Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
DO - 10.3390/tropicalmed10060161
IS - 6
LA - eng
M3 - Research Article
N2 - <jats:p>This retrospective cohort study aimed to assess clinical and epidemiological characteristics, treatment outcomes, and predictors of serological cure in patients with chronic Chagas disease in a non-endemic setting. All individuals aged ≥16 years with confirmed infection and evaluated at a tertiary hospital in Spain from 2008 to 2023 were included. Most of the 107 participants were women (78.5%) and Bolivian-born (99.1%). Digestive and cardiac involvement were identified in 32.7% and 17.8% of cases, respectively. Cardiac symptoms were significantly associated with the diagnostic findings of cardiac involvement (odds ratio [OR] 3.0, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1–8.2), whereas digestive symptoms did not correlate with imaging abnormalities (OR 0.7, 95% CI 0.3–1.6). Antiparasitic treatment, usually benznidazole, was initiated in 69% of patients and led to adverse events in 66.2%, with treatment discontinuation in 25.7%. Only 8.1% of treated patients achieved serological cure after a median 26 months, with obesity emerging as the only independent predictor (adjusted OR 31.0, 95% CI 3.7–261.2). Cardiac progression occurred in 9.3% of patients despite treatment. Although 59.8% were lost to follow-up, the cohort maintained a median follow-up of 27 months. These findings underscore the need for improved treatment strategies and sustained clinical monitoring in non-endemic settings.</jats:p>
PB - MDPI AG
PY - 2025
EP - 16
T2 - Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
TI - Chagas Disease in a Non-Endemic Setting: Clinical Profile, Treatment Outcomes, and Predictors of Cure in a 15-Year Cohort Study
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2414-6366/10/6/161
VL - 10
SN - 2414-6366
ER -