Globalization, inequity and Chagas disease

Abstract

Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis) bears a close relationship to multiple social and political aspects involving issues of globalization and inequity. Such relations concern the process of disease production and control in parallel with medical management. Despite the poverty in Latin America and various problems related to inequities and globalization, Chagas disease has been controlled in several areas, a fact that reinforces the countries' self-reliance. Several problems and challenges related to the disease can be expected in the future, mainly concerning medical care for already infected individuals and the sustainability of effective epidemiological surveillance. Both points depend heavily on improved performance by the national health systems, principally in terms of their efficiency and their capacity to overcome inequity. A particularly important role has been attributed to the Latin American scientific and academic community in the implementation and sustainability of efficient control policies. Control activities have now evolved towards internationally shared initiatives, a major new stride forward in the region's political context.