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CONNECTICUT – The deadly "kissing virus" has been confirmed in dozens of US states. It has not been found in Connecticut but has been confirmed in states as close as Pennsylvania and could be in New Jersey, announced the Federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Chagas' disease, as it is officially called, has earned its nickname because the triatomines that transmit it usually bite in the face.
The CDC said in September that the kisses virus was spreading northward, coming from South America and Central America. If Chagas disease is not treated, the infection lasts a lifetime and can be life threatening, the agency said. Most people who are infected have no symptoms, including fever, fatigue, body aches, headaches, rashes and swelling at the site of transmission. But in severe cases, Chagas disease can lead to a stroke or heart failure.
Currently, about 300,000 people in the United States and 8 million people worldwide are living with the disease, and researchers expect other infections in the United States to occur with climate change.
Kissing bug infections can also be transmitted from mother to baby via contaminated blood products and organ transplants and, more rarely, in laboratory accidents or through drinks or alcohol. contaminated food. In many countries where the disease is common, blood donations are screened for the disease.
The CDC confirmed last week that the embrace virus had bitten a Delaware girl in the southern half of the United States. The girl was bitten in the face while she was watching TV in the family room, near a wooded area. The family had not traveled recently outside their area, which, according to the CDC, was proof that the kissing virus was in the state.
The girl did not get sick of the kissing virus, according to reports in the press.
The map below shows where the kissing virus has been detected or is likely to be.
What to do to protect yourself
The CDC says that people can protect themselves from the kissing virus in several ways:
- Seal the cracks around the house;
- Do not install garden lights near the house, as they can attract insects.
- Allow animals to sleep indoors at night;
- Clear scrub or heaps of stones near the house;
- Use screens on the windows;
- Keep pets and exteriors clean.
People who discover an insect that they think could be a kissing insect should put it in a container, send it to a container and take it to their health department or local university for identification, then clean it thoroughly. the area where it was found with a solution comprising a portion of bleaching agent to nine parts of water.
The kissing virus can also make pets sick. Researchers from the Texas A & M University's Department of Life Sciences and Agriculture said the parasite could infect dogs with serious heart disease, although many show no symptoms. The researchers explained that the complications were generally related to the age of the dog, its level of activity and the genetic strain of the parasite.
There is currently no vaccination to protect humans and dogs from Chagas disease.
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