Chagas disease is little known or understood by travelers and the effects of this disease on the human body can be devastating if left undiagnosed or untreated.
This disease is caused by the bite of a bug which is predominately found in S. America and more specifically Bolivia but it is also widespread throughout most South American countries.
There is no preventive medical treatment, the disease can go undetected for years without symptoms until it reaches its secondary stage which is even more difficult to cure.
To fully understand the scope of this disease I direct your attention to the following web sites;
The WHO or World Health Organization. Their web site is more technical in its presentation and not as comprehensive as the next web site below.
This next web site has a good overview of the disease, its methods of spread or infection to the human body and I also included this map of endemic infected areas of S. America.
BBC news which as a recent report on this problematic disease.
The bottom line on this post is information concerning this potentially dangerous disease for the travelers who will venture into South America and especially Bolivia.
If you read the reports this seems to be in part isolated to rural areas yet even in the cities there is always the potential for Chagas disease exposure, so when checking into that jungle hut, guesthouse, hostel or where you will be sleeping, I strongly suggest that you be careful during the sleeping hours and if in a remote area check at night to see if any of these creepy crawlers are coming out of the walls of the structure.
Knowledge is a powerful thing and we present these type of posts for your knowledge to assist you in having safe travels no matter where you go in the world.
Travel Safe, Travel Happy