Abstract

In 1999 Chile declare no vectorial transmission of Chagas disease. On the other hand, the development of dwelling policy which include endemic rural zones, have obtained important advances in human groups with height deficiency of habitability. This epidemiological situation was studied 10 years after therapy, in 37 chronic chagasic patients from rural zones of the VI Region, by an epidemiologic inquest (pre and post-therapy) and parasitological evolution (post therapy). The inquest included: knowledge of the vector, presence of triatomines in the dwelling antecedents of have been bitten by triatomines, and construction materials of the dwellings. The parasitological evolution was performed by xenodiagnosis (XD) (37 cases) and Polimerase Chain Reaction (PCR) in peripherical blood (34 cases). The results of the epidemiological survey evidenced important changes of the quality of the rural dwelling of the treated chagasic patients, while, in relation to parasitemia, circulant Trypanosoma cruzi was detected in the 89.2% of the cases. (37.8%) and 88.2% by XD and PCR respectively. It is concluded that the persistence of the parasite after therapy is not relationated with the presence of intradomiciliary Triatoma infestans