CHAGAS VIRCLIA® MONOTEST

Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis, is a potentially life-threatening parasitic disease caused by Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi). The disease is endemic in Latin America but has become a global health concern due to population movements and migration, with cases increasingly reported in North America, Europe, and other non-endemic regions. 

Chagas disease progresses through an acute phase, which is often asymptomatic or associated with mild, non-specific symptoms, and a chronic phase, during which infection may persist for decades. Approximately 20–30% of chronically infected individuals eventually develop serious cardiac, digestive, or neurological complications, including Chagas cardiomyopathy, heart failure, arrhythmias, and megacolon or megaesophagus. Because parasitemia becomes very low during the chronic stage, direct detection of the parasite is often challenging. Consequently, serological detection of anti-T. cruzi antibodies, particularly IgG antibodies, represents the cornerstone of laboratory diagnosis in chronic infection. International recommendations indicate that the diagnosis of chronic Chagas disease should be based on antibody detection using validated serological assays.