The treatment for Chagas disease, which is caused by the bite of an insect known as "barber", should be started as soon as possible after diagnosis and is done with the intake of Benznidazole, an antiparasitic medication offered free by SUS.
Usually, treatment is done with 2 to 3 doses of the drug per day, for 60 days straight. The dose should be guided by a doctor and usually varies according to age and weight, following these criteria:
- Adults: 5 mg / kg / day Children: 5 to 10 mg / kg / day Babies: 10 mg / kg / day
Starting treatment as soon as possible is not only important to ensure the cure of the infection, but also to prevent organ damage, as well as reducing the risk of passing the disease on to others.
In rare cases, there may be intolerance to Benznidazole, which can be perceived through signs such as changes in skin characteristics, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. If this happens, it is important to go back to the doctor to stop using Benznidazole and start treatment with another medication, which is usually Nifurtimox.
During treatment, the ideal is to go to a doctor's appointment once a week or every 15 days and perform at least two blood tests during treatment for better monitoring of results.
Understand which symptoms may indicate Chagas disease.
Treatment during pregnancy
Because there is a risk of toxicity for pregnancy, the treatment of chagas disease is not recommended in pregnant women, being only done after delivery or, in very severe cases, during pregnancy.
When treatment is not done, there is a risk that the infection will pass from the mother to the baby during pregnancy or even during delivery.
Since the diagnosis is made through a blood test that assesses the presence of antibodies that fight the disease, and these antibodies can also pass from the mother to the baby, remaining active for up to 9 months, it may be necessary to do several tests of blood in the baby during this time to assess the amount of antibodies and identify whether treatment needs to be started on the baby. If the amount of antibodies decreases, it means that the baby is not infected.
Signs of improvement
The improvement of symptoms usually appears gradually from the first week of treatment and includes reduction of fever, improvement of malaise, decrease in abdominal swelling and disappearance of diarrhea.
Although symptoms may improve until the end of the first month, treatment should be continued for 2 months to ensure that parasites inserted into the body by the insect's bite are completely eliminated. The only way to ensure that the disease is cured is to have a blood test at the end of treatment.
Signs of worsening
When the treatment is not started or is not done properly, the symptoms may disappear after 2 months, however, the parasites continue to develop and infect various organs in the body.
In these cases, the person may return to new symptoms up to 20 or 30 years after the first infection. However, these symptoms are more serious and are related to injuries to various organs such as the heart, lungs and intestine, putting life at risk.
