Chagas disease, long considered only a threat abroad, is established in California and the Southern U.S.
“The disease is definitely underdiagnosed,” said Hernandez, the Kaiser cardiologist.
“If we screened for it and caught it early, most patients could be cured.
The problem is we don’t, and people end up dying or requiring terrifically expensive care,” including organ transplants and surgery.
latimes.com/science/story/2025…
Chagas disease: The deadly disease you've never heard of is here
Chagas disease is deadly, pervasive and more prevalent in the U.S. than you'd think. It's not just brought here by people from nations where the disease is endemic, but by bloodsucking kissing bugs native to the U.S.Susanne Rust (Los Angeles Times)
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KnowAttitude
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Timo
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in reply to Chuck Darwin • •The Kissing Bug isn't the only Assassin Bug type to beware of because their bites are as painful as bee stings. They have a similar body build, so learn to identify them when you see them. Kissing Bug, Assassin Bug, Wheel Bug etc.
Roy -- the dull one
in reply to Chuck Darwin • • •Thank you for reminding/informing us about Chagas disease, Chuck!
To learn more, there's a good article by the World Health Organization:
who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/…
It's a nice summary, and available without the LA Times firewall.
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p.s. It's interesting that a possible explanation of your namesake's persistent health problems after his explorations in Argentina was a Trypanosoma cruzi infection (Chagas disease). I bet you knew that, but maybe it's interesting news for some.
Detail
www.who.int