Chagas Disease Details: WHO celebrates Chagas disease every year to make people aware around the world. Let us know what is this disease and how did this disease get its name?
Image Credit source: Freepik
Chagas Disease: When is World Chagas Day observed? How many people are affected by this disease worldwide? How many deaths occur every year? When did the celebration of this day start? How did the disease get its name Chagas? Current Affairs The answer to every question related to will be found in this copy. World Chagas Day is observed every year on 14 April. Chagas Disease Day was approved by the 72nd World Health Assembly in the year 2019.
World Health Organization (WHO) celebrates this day with a view to spread awareness about this disease affecting millions of people every year. For this disease, WHO has fixed the theme of the year 2023 – Time to integrate Chagas disease into primary health care.
Also read: With which countries does India trade the most, who are the 10 biggest trading partners? Know the answer here
What is Chagas disease?
According to WHO, it is a communicable parasitic disease that infects 60 to 70 lakh people worldwide annually. Out of these, about 12 thousand people die untimely. This is known as silent disease. For the first time in the year 1909, this disease was detected in a child of Brazil.
Dr. Carlos Chagas had identified this disease in this child, later WHO named this disease after the discoverer of this disease. It infects healthy individuals through defecation. It can also be spread through the consumption of food contaminated with the faeces of an infected insect or through accidental laboratory exposure. However, it does not spread through casual contact with infected humans or animals.
Also read: Uthiramerur Inscription: Where is the Uthiramerur inscription and what is its significance? know the answer
Chagas disease symptoms
70-80% of patients show no symptoms throughout life, making early detection challenging. In 20-30% of patients the infection develops into a chronic stage, causing damage to the heart, digestive system or nervous system. The main symptoms are fever, headache, rashes, swollen lumps, nausea or diarrhea, and muscle or abdominal pain.
In which part of the world is this disease the most?
According to the Pan-American Health Organization, Chagas is currently found in 21 countries in the Americas, where an average of 30,000 new cases are seen every year. Along with the Southern United States, its patients have also been found in many European, Eastern Mediterranean and Western Pacific countries. There is currently no vaccine available for Chagas disease.
: Language Inputs
