Which parasite causes Chagas disease with megacolon and megEsophagus and is transmitted by kissing bugs in South America?

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Prepare for the NBME Microbiology Test. Study with flashcards and multiple-choice questions. Each query comes with hints and detailed explanations. Ace your exam!

Multiple Choice

Which parasite causes Chagas disease with megacolon and megEsophagus and is transmitted by kissing bugs in South America?

Explanation:
Chagas disease is caused by a parasite that is transmitted by triatomine kissing bugs in South America. In the chronic stage, the parasite damages the enteric nervous system, particularly the nerve networks that regulate gut motility. This loss of innervation leads to impaired peristalsis and progressive dilation of parts of the gastrointestinal tract, most classically the esophagus and the colon, producing megaesophagus and megacolon. The transmission detail—via kissing bugs that bite and defecate near the bite site, with the parasite entering through mucous membranes or breaks in the skin—helps distinguish it from other infections. Leishmania donovani is spread by sandflies and causes visceral leishmaniasis, not GI dilation. Plasmodium falciparum causes malaria. Giardia lamblia causes giardiasis and is transmitted via contaminated water, not by kissing bugs or causing megaesophagus or megacolon.

Chagas disease is caused by a parasite that is transmitted by triatomine kissing bugs in South America. In the chronic stage, the parasite damages the enteric nervous system, particularly the nerve networks that regulate gut motility. This loss of innervation leads to impaired peristalsis and progressive dilation of parts of the gastrointestinal tract, most classically the esophagus and the colon, producing megaesophagus and megacolon.

The transmission detail—via kissing bugs that bite and defecate near the bite site, with the parasite entering through mucous membranes or breaks in the skin—helps distinguish it from other infections.

Leishmania donovani is spread by sandflies and causes visceral leishmaniasis, not GI dilation. Plasmodium falciparum causes malaria. Giardia lamblia causes giardiasis and is transmitted via contaminated water, not by kissing bugs or causing megaesophagus or megacolon.

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