A KISS can leave you with a fever, fatigue, body aches, headache, loss of appetite, diarrhea, and vomiting – all from a single bug bite.
The CDC has reported that more than 300,000 people in the United States have been affected by Chagas disease, carried by the triatomine insect, also known as the “kissing bug” or “vampire bug” because of their taste for human blood.
When the kissing bug bites a human it deposits feces that get into your blood stream post itching (stock Image)[/caption]
Kissing bugs tend to bite your face, which is why it got the name kissing bug (Stock Image)[/caption]
T. cruzi bacteria is transmitted in the feces of the kissing bug[/caption]
Chagas disease has been identified as endemic to the US, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released on September 2.
While the disease is already endemic to South America, Central America, and Mexico, there have been noticeable increases in cases across 32 states in the US, with 45,000 individuals already affected in Los Angeles County alone.
“Most people living with Chagas disease are unaware of their diagnosis, often until it’s too late to have effective treatment,” said Judith Currier, MD, chief of infectious diseases at UCLA Health.
Untreated, Chagas disease can cause serious heart and digestive problems, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The “kissing bugs” – also called conenose bugs or barber bugs – are so called because they tend to bite people directly on the face.
After they bite, the bugs poop on your skin, and their feces carry the T. cruzi parasite.
When an infected person scratches the bite, they rub the parasite into the open wound and, from there, it enters the bloodstream, according to UCLA professor of clinical microbiology, Dr. Shaun Yang.
This infects the host with Chagas disease, an illness that in its earliest stages can cause severe swelling in the eyelid, which Yang calls a “hallmark of acute Chagas infection.”
Other “acute” symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, fever, fatigue, body aches, headache, and loss of appetite.
However, if it’s been left untreated, Chagas disease “kills the heart very slowly,” according to Yang, with 20% of infected people experiencing serious heart problems such as an enlarged heart, heart failure, or cardiac arrest.
It can also result in digestive problems like an enlarged colon or enlarged esophagus.
Globally, an estimated 6,469,283 cases of Chagas disease have been reported across 51 countries.
PATIENT STORIES
Miami Transplant Institute told the story of Jose Santos, who was bitten by a kissing bug at 23 years old.
20 years later, Santos developed Chagas.
How does Chagas disease spread
How is Chagas spread
- Blood transfusions: Chagas disease can be transmitted through blood transfusions from an infected donor.
- Organ transplants: The disease can also be transmitted through organ transplants from an infected donor.
- Mother-to-child transmission: Chagas disease can be passed from an infected mother to her baby during pregnancy or breastfeeding.
- Contaminated food or water: In rare cases, Chagas disease can be transmitted through contaminated food or water that contains the parasite.
Where are the kissing bugs found
- Cracks in walls
- Under beds or mattresses
- In wood piles
- Dog kennels or chicken coops
- Thatched roofs or poorly sealed houses
How to prevent kissing bugs
- Seal cracks and gaps around your home
- Use screens on doors/windows
- Keep pets indoors at night
- Turn off outdoor lights (which attract them)
“After the bug bite, I knew something could go wrong at any point in my life,” Santos said.
“It finally hit me in 2005; I fell twice and was unconscious both times. I went to the cardiologist and they ran some tests – that’s when my heart stopped. I needed a pacemaker to survive.”
In 2021, Santos had to receive a heart transplant.
A man in Florida named Juan Bautista Corzo Veloza nearly died from Chagas-related heart failure until a heart transplant saved him, according to DNDI.
“If not for the heart attack, I wouldn’t even know that Chagas disease exists,” Veloza said.
Veloza reiterated that he was once an active man and, now, walking a few meters causes him fatigue.
Horrifying ‘kissing bug disease’ can now be found in 32 states (CDC)[/caption]
DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT
Doctors can detect the parasite in the early phases of Chagas, according to DNDI.
However, in the chronic phase, doctors must use two or three antibody tests because no single test is accurate enough.
Only two drugs are available to treat the disease – Benznidazole and Nifurtimox.
Both require about 60 days of treatment and can cause side effects, especially in adults.
A new oral drug, AN2-502998, is currently in clinical trials and could offer safer, shorter treatment in the future.
Kissing bugs have mostly been found in South America, Central America, and Mexico[/caption]
