Abstract
The affiliation for the fifth author is incorrect. Hanane El Kenz is affiliated with Brugmann University Hospital Center and Queen Fabiola University Children Hospital Blood Bank Department, Brussels, Belgium.
Highlights
Chagas disease is a parasitic infection due to Trypanosoma cruzi that is endemic in Latin America (LA), where Triatominae vectors are present
We report here the first well-documented case of T. cruzi transmission in Belgium that was retrospectively diagnosed thanks to the recent implementation of T. cruzi infection screening among blood donors and a subsequent look-back procedure in our country
In Belgium, from Fall 2013 onward, the blood bank services decided to perform a broader serological screening for T. cruzi in all at-risk donors born in an endemic country who were previously only temporary deferred from donation
Summary
Chagas disease is a parasitic infection due to Trypanosoma cruzi that is endemic in Latin America (LA), where Triatominae vectors are present. A systematic T. cruzi screening of transfusion-dedicated blood components obtained from at-risk donors has not been organized in all European countries, in northern Europe but with some exceptions [5]. In Belgium, donors born in an endemic country or with a history of travel to endemic countries were, until recently, only excluded from donation during the six months following the last “at-risk” trip [5]. We thereby highlight the usefulness of T. cruzi systematic screening among at-risk donors everywhere in Europe—even in countries with rather low Latin American immigration, like Belgium—and emphasize the importance of increasing clinicians’ awareness about Chagas disease in patients receiving recurrent blood transfusions
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