Overview

• A new analysis in the CDC journal Emerging Infectious Diseases argues Chagas is hypoendemic in parts of the U.S. and urges official endemic recognition to drive surveillance and care.
• Triatomine kissing bugs carrying Trypanosoma cruzi have been documented across more than 30 states, with several species known to enter homes and sustain transmission cycles with wildlife and dogs.
• Researchers cite at least eight states with likely locally acquired human infections, and localized hotspots such as Los Angeles’ Griffith Park where about one-third of sampled bugs tested positive.
• An estimated 280,000 to 300,000 people in the U.S. may be infected, including 70,000 to 100,000 in California, yet the disease is not nationally notifiable and underdiagnosis is widely reported.
• Early treatment with benznidazole or nifurtimox is most effective, as undetected chronic infection can lead to severe heart and digestive disease, prompting calls for clinician education and targeted testing.