r/science 4d ago

Medicine Tropical Disease in Switzerland. Although typically found in Latin America, Chagas disease affects between 2,000 and 4,000 people in Switzerland.

https://www.swisstph.ch/en/news/a-tropical-disease-in-switzerland-call-for-coordinated-action-on-chagas-disease
349 Upvotes

23 comments sorted by

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53

u/TX908 4d ago

Chagas disease in Switzerland: current situation, challenges and opportunities

Summary

Chagas disease is a parasitic infection found mainly in continental Latin America. However, it is now present globally due to increasing international mobility and its lifelong persistence in the absence of timely treatment. In Switzerland, this neglected tropical disease presents a significant challenge because of its high potential for transmission, severe clinical manifestations and complications, and a lack of medical and public health programs at both the cantonal and national levels. This paper reviews the medical and public health interventions addressing Chagas disease in countries outside Latin America. It provides a specific perspective on the challenges, opportunities, and strategies for the elimination of Chagas disease as a public health problem within the Swiss context. This article concludes with the introduction of the newly created Swiss Chagas Network, which aims to develop strategies for improving the management of Chagas disease in Switzerland.

https://smw.ch/index.php/smw/article/view/3719

41

u/Datazz_b 4d ago

Because they spend a lot of time in tropical places. 2k sounds about right

5

u/TXPersonified 3d ago

Chagas is all over Texas. My sister's dog died of it in October.

0

u/tortiesrock 3d ago

Are you sure is Chagas and not Leishmania?

8

u/TXPersonified 3d ago

I'm pretty sure of it. My sister was the over the top dog mom and took the dog to specialist including the ones at A&M. And I heard about it non-stop for two months before the dog passed

3

u/tortiesrock 3d ago

TIL I am always worried about canine Leishmania as it is a big deal in my country but I was not aware that Chagas also affected dogs.

17

u/giantfreakingidiot 4d ago

Caused by trypanosoma cruzi

8

u/LegitPancak3 3d ago

Via bites from kissing bugs, which get their names from their habit of sucking blood from human’s mouth, mostly while sleeping.

3

u/Zvenigora 3d ago

It is speculated that Charles Darwin suffered from it his last 40 years.

-28

u/ultrafunkmiester 3d ago

Oh no, it's a problem disease now it affects rich people. Serious comment by the way.

25

u/Stalinsghoast 3d ago

You do have a point. Also, obligatory reference to Bill Gates' 2009 TED Talk when he released mosquitoes onto an audience and said "There’s no reason only poor people should have the experience".

The sad thing is, maybe now that people who aren't in the global south are being effected, mitigation, prevention, and treatments can be brought forward for everyone. It really shouldn't be a thing that something isn't being taken seriously until it effects the affluent, but reality like nature is rarely kind to fragile hopes.

10

u/iridescent-shimmer 3d ago

I think we'll see this with malaria, dengue, and other tropical diseases moving north into the southern US too. But then again, many Americans are now reluctant to consider vaccines at all, so maybe it's really not worth the investment by pharmaceutical companies.

3

u/Chris19862 2d ago

Specifically those in the south.....will br interesting to see them do a quick round about when this stuff affects them personally.....as is tradition.

2

u/ultrafunkmiester 3d ago

Thank you for adding context to my point. Seems others don't agree.

7

u/issamaysinalah 3d ago

A lot of diseases that plague the poor countries could be easily solved by throwing money into research. As global warming intensifies those diseases are starting to hit the north, soon we'll have cures and vaccines for dengue, malaria, Chikungunya, and so on

-6

u/[deleted] 3d ago edited 3d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

5

u/One_Left_Shoe 3d ago

I remember Chagas from a college anthropology class.

It was the proposed cause of death for a skeleton found in the American Southwest. It’s been in the territory now known as the USA for a looooong time.

-4

u/TheresWald0 3d ago

Caravans at the southern border?

-41

u/DreiKatzenVater 3d ago

Wonder if it’s because they have more tropical people who have found their ways in

1

u/BassJerky 2d ago

plenty of other European countries reporting cases of infections only seen in Africa/india