Symptoms of Chagas disease

Symptoms of Chagas disease

The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Chagas disease includes the 51 symptoms listed below:

• Acute form symptoms - The symptoms of the acute form may include:
  • Chagoma - erythematous nodule at the bite sites.
  • Fever - usually high fever
  • High fever
  • Anemia
  • Facial swelling - one-sided
  • Eyelid edema
  • Regional lymphadenopathy
  • Hepatosplenomegaly
  • Meningoencephalic inflammation
  • Lethargy
  • Apathy
  • Sleepiness
  • Headaches
  • Convulsions
• Mild Chagas symptoms - Milder forms of Chagas disease may include symptoms such as:
  • Mild fever
  • Severe asthenia
  • Generalized lymphadenopathy
• Chronic form symptoms - The chronic form may include symptoms such as:
  • Heart symptoms
  • Myocarditis
  • Gastrointestinal symptoms
  • Megaesophagus
  • Megacolon
• Enlarged esophagus
• Enlarged colon
• Swelling around eyes infection through conjunctiva of the eye
• Fever
• Malaise
• Facial swelling
• Leg swelling
• Meningoencephalitis
• Lymphadenopathy
• Enlarged liver
• Enlarged spleen
• Presence of parasite in blood
• Enlarged heart
• Atrophy of heart
• Heart fibrosis
• Dilated cardiomyopathy
• Arrhythmia
• Thromboembolism
• Congestive heart failure
• Swallowing difficulty
• Chest pain
• Regurgitation
• Aspiration
• Constipation
• Abdominal pain
• Colon obstruction
• more information...»

Research symptoms & diagnosis of Chagas disease:

• Overview -- Chagas disease
• Diagnostic Tests for Chagas disease
• Complications -- Chagas disease
• Doctors & Specialists
• Misdiagnosis and Alternative Diagnoses
• Hidden Causes of Chagas disease
• Other Causes -- causes of these or similar symptoms

Chagas disease: Complications

Review medical complications possibly associated with Chagas disease:

• Chronic Chagas disease - about a third of cases become chronic with delayed symptoms
• Myocarditis
• Coma
• Death
• more complications...»

Research More About Chagas disease

Do I have Chagas disease?

• Chagas disease: Introduction
• Chagas disease: Diagnostic Testing to confirm diagnosis
• Alternative diagnoses and misdiagnosis for Chagas disease
• How serious is it?
• Treatments for Chagas disease
• More about Chagas disease

Wrongly Diagnosed with Chagas disease?

The list of other diseases or medical conditions that may be on the differential diagnosis list of alternative diagnoses for Chagas disease includes:

• Malaria
• Rheumatic fever
• Africam trypanosomiasis
• Myocarditis
• Coxsackie virus infection
• more diagnoses...»

See the full list of 19 alternative diagnoses for Chagas disease

More about symptoms of Chagas disease:

More information about symptoms of Chagas disease and related conditions:

• Other diseases with similar symptoms and common misdiagnoses
• Tests to determine if these are the symptoms of Chagas disease
• Symptoms that may be caused by complications of Chagas disease
• Risk factors for Chagas disease

Other Possible Causes of these Symptoms

Click on any of the symptoms below to see a full list of other causes including diseases, medical conditions, toxins, drug interactions, or drug side effect causes of that symptom.

• Abdominal pain - see all causes of Abdominal pain
• Acute form symptoms
• Anemia - see all causes of Anemia
• Apathy - see all causes of Apathy
• Arrhythmia - see all causes of Arrhythmia
• Chest pain - see all causes of Chest pain
• Chronic form symptoms
• Colon obstruction - see all causes of Bowel obstruction
• Congestive heart failure - see all causes of Congestive heart failure
• Constipation - see all causes of Constipation
• Convulsions - see all causes of Convulsions
• Enlarged heart - see all causes of Heart symptoms
• Enlarged liver - see all causes of Enlarged liver
• Enlarged spleen - see all causes of Swollen spleen
• Eyelid edema - see all causes of Eyelid swelling
• Facial swelling - see all causes of Face swelling
• Facial swelling - see all causes of Face swelling
• Fever - see all causes of Fever
• Fever - see all causes of Fever
• Gastrointestinal symptoms - see all causes of Digestive symptoms
• Generalized lymphadenopathy - see all causes of Swollen lymph nodes
• Headaches - see all causes of Headache
• Heart symptoms - see all causes of Heart symptoms
• Hepatosplenomegaly - see all causes of Enlarged liver and spleen
• High fever - see all causes of High fever
• Leg swelling - see all causes of Leg swelling
• Lethargy - see all causes of Lethargy
• Lymphadenopathy - see all causes of Lymphadenopathy
• Malaise - see all causes of Malaise
• Megacolon - see all causes of Megacolon
• Megaesophagus - see all causes of Megaesophagus
• Meningoencephalic inflammation - see all causes of Meningitis
• Meningoencephalitis - see all causes of Meningoencephalitis
• Mild Chagas symptoms
• Mild fever - see all causes of Mild fever
• Myocarditis - see all causes of Myocarditis
• Regional lymphadenopathy - see all causes of Swollen lymph nodes
• Regurgitation - see all causes of Regurgitation
• Sleepiness - see all causes of Drowsiness
• Swallowing difficulty - see all causes of Swallowing difficulty

Medical Books Online about Chagas disease

Medical Books Excerpts Excerpts of published medical book chapters related to Chagas disease are available from published medical books for more detailed information about Chagas disease.

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

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Article Excerpts About Symptoms of Chagas disease:

There are three stages of infection with Chagas disease; each stage has different symptoms. Some persons may be infected and never develop symptoms.

Acute:

Acute symptoms only occur in about 1% of cases. Most people infected do not seek medical attention. The most recognized symptom of acute Chagas infection is the Romaña’s sign, or swelling of the eye on one side of the face, usually at the bite wound or where feces were rubbed into the eye. Other symptoms are usually not specific for Chagas infection. These symptoms may include fatigue, fever, enlarged liver or spleen, and swollen lymph glands. Sometimes, a rash, loss of appetite, diarrhea, and vomiting occur. In infants and in very young children with acute Chagas disease, swelling of the brain can develop in acute Chagas disease, and this can cause death. In general, symptoms last for 4-8 weeks and then they go away, even without treatment.

Indeterminate:

Eight to 10 weeks after infection, the indeterminate stage begins. During this stage, people do not have symptoms.

Chronic:

Ten to 20 years after infection, people may develop the most serious symptoms of Chagas disease. Cardiac problems, including an enlarged heart, altered heart rate or rhythm, heart failure, or cardiac arrest are symptoms of chronic disease. Chagas disease can also lead to enlargement of parts of the digestive tract, which result in severe constipation or problems with swallowing. In persons who are immune compromised, including persons with HIV/AIDS, Chagas disease can be severe. Not everyone will develop the chronic symptoms of Chagas disease.

Chagas disease as a Cause of Symptoms or Medical Conditions

When considering symptoms of Chagas disease, it is also important to consider Chagas disease as a possible cause of other medical conditions. The Disease Database lists the following medical conditions that Chagas disease may cause:

• Alopecia
• Aseptic meningitis
• Atrioventricular node conduction block
• Chancre
• Constipation
• Cranial nerve disorder
• Dilated cardiomyopathy
• Dysphagia
• Intrauterine death
• Intrauterine growth retardation
• Left bundle branch block
• Lymphadenopathy
• Megacolon
• Megaesophagus
• Megaureter
• Myocarditis
• Oedema
• Oedema (localised)
• Pyrexia
• Q waves
• Right bundle branch block
• Romana sign
• Skin ulceration

Chagas disease: Onset and Incubation

Incubation period for Chagas disease: Symptoms may occur within a few days to weeks. Most people do not have symptoms until the chronic stage of infection, 10-20 years after first being infected. (Source: excerpt from Chagas Disease: DPD)

Medical articles and books on symptoms:

These general reference articles may be of interest in relation to medical signs and symptoms of disease in general:

• Diagnostic Testing for a Diagnosis of Chagas disease
• Research Alternative Diagnoses for Chagas disease
• How serious is Chagas disease?
• More about Chagas disease
• Online Diagnosis
• Self Diagnosis Pitfalls
• Pitfalls of Online Diagnosis
• Symptoms of the Silent Killer Diseases
• Lesser known silent killer diseases
• Books on signs and symptoms

Full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis

About signs and symptoms of Chagas disease:

The symptom information on this page attempts to provide a list of some possible signs and symptoms of Chagas disease. This signs and symptoms information for Chagas disease has been gathered from various sources, may not be fully accurate, and may not be the full list of Chagas disease signs or Chagas disease symptoms. Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Chagas disease may vary on an individual basis for each patient. Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they are indeed Chagas disease symptoms.