Trypanosoma cruzi: the supposed removal of the use of the xenodiagnosis and blood culture.

In 2009 the centenary of the unveiling of animal and human infections by Trypanosoma cruzi took place. Thus the disease known as “Chagas’ disease” emerged, and it received numerous evaluations under different aspects. The studies were conducted in Brazil and in other countries, even some outside Latin America. These studies were able to back up parasitological, epidemiological and clinical matters amongst others, as well as activities regarding prevention and transmission, for example. However, at the time mentioned it was noted that we lacked information about three major issues: an effective inference regarding pathogenicity; the absence of a foolproof serological test to establish the diagnosis, considering its sensitivity and specificity; and the fact that there is no specific treatment that has great effectiveness and which is satisfactorily tolerated.