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Renal Involvement in Chagas’ Disease (American Trypanosomiasis)

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Tropical Nephrology

Abstract

Chagas disease is caused by the protozoa Trypanosoma cruzi, in which kidney injury is rarely described. The aim of this study is to describe the features of kidney injury in Chagas disease. This is a review study regarding kidney injury associated with Chagas disease. A deep search was performed in the main medical databases (PubMed and Scielo), using the keywords “Chagas disease” and “Kidney.” Renal involvement is a rare manifestation of Chagas’ disease, and there are few studies on the subject in literature. There is evidence of functional and structural renal alterations after T. cruzi infection. The occurrence of glomerulonephritis in the chronic phase of the disease has been reported in infections by T. cruzi. The pathophysiology of renal involvement in Chagas disease seems to include autoimmune phenomena. T. cruzi antigens have also been identified in renal graft glomeruli and interstitium in a patient with acute form of the Chagas disease. The most common lesions associated with the trypanosomes are mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis and membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis. The specific treatment aims to cure the infection, prevent organ lesions or their progress, and decrease the possibility of T. cruzi transmission, being effective in most cases. Renal function deterioration is observed in patients with Chagas disease, but there is no currently consistent data demonstrating renal function recovery after specific treatment. Further studies are required to better investigate renal involvement in Chagas disease.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Post-Graduation Program in Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, Federal University of Ceara, Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil

    Elizabeth De Francesco Daher

  2. Post-Graduation Programs in Public Health and Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Fortaleza, Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil

    Geraldo Bezerra da Silva Junior

  3. School of Medicine, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Elvino Barros

  4. Division of Nephrology, Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Verônica Verleine Hörbe Antunes

Authors
  1. Elizabeth De Francesco Daher
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  2. Geraldo Bezerra da Silva Junior
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  3. Elvino Barros
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  4. Verônica Verleine Hörbe Antunes
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Correspondence to Geraldo Bezerra da Silva Junior .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Fortaleza, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil

    Geraldo Bezerra da Silva Junior

  2. Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil

    Elizabeth De Francesco Daher

  3. Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Elvino Barros

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De Francesco Daher, E., Bezerra da Silva Junior, G., Barros, E., Antunes, V.V.H. (2020). Renal Involvement in Chagas’ Disease (American Trypanosomiasis). In: Bezerra da Silva Junior, G., De Francesco Daher, E., Barros, E. (eds) Tropical Nephrology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44500-3_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44500-3_8

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-44499-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-44500-3

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