New Scenarios of Chagas Disease Transmission in Northern Colombia

J Parasitol Res. 2017:2017:3943215. doi: 10.1155/2017/3943215. Epub 2017 Sep 26.

Abstract

Chagas disease (CD) is a systemic parasitic infection caused by the flagellated form of Trypanosoma cruzi. Córdoba department, located in the Colombian Caribbean Coast, was not considered as a region at risk of T. cruzi transmission. In this article, we describe the first acute CD case in Salitral village in Sahagún, Córdoba, confirmed by microscopy and serological tests. Our results draw attention to a new scenario of transmission of acute CD in nonendemic areas of Colombia and highlight the need to include CD in the differential diagnosis of febrile syndromes in this region.