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Axios Latino: A Neglected Danger and Other Topics You Should Know About Today

2021-10-14T19:33:38.994Z


Neglected diseases and the Puerto Rican who cared for our teeth: read the newsletter with the stories with the greatest impact on Latino communities in the hemisphere.


Welcome to Axios Latino, a newsletter to tell you every Tuesday and Thursday the stories that have a special impact on the Latino communities in the United States and in Latin America.

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We will always publish it in Spanish on Noticias Telemundo.

1 Topic: A Neglected Disease Killing Latinos

Chagas disease kills about 12,000 people

each year on the American continent, about 32 people a day.

But it remains poorly understood and difficult to diagnose.

A microscope specimen of Trypanosoma cruzi, the Chagas-causing parasite, taken in 1977 at the CDC. Smith Collection / Gado / Getty Images

Why it matters

: It has been called the "new HIV / AIDS of the Americas," with approximately six million people infected on the continent, according to the Pan American Health Organization.

  • It mainly affects impoverished areas, where getting sick can perpetuate poverty by damaging physical and mental development and making work difficult.

  • The WHO considers it a “neglected tropical disease”.

Important note

: The Chagas-causing parasite is typically transmitted to humans through bug bugs, nicknamed “kissing bugs,” but also by blood transfusions, organ transplants, placenta, or contaminated food.

  • Symptoms include fever, headache, and abdominal pain.

    Severe cases can lead to heart complications (such as an enlarged heart or, ultimately, cardiac arrest) and gastrointestinal problems (such as a dilated esophagus or colon).

In numbers

: Less than 1% of people with Chagas disease in the US are diagnosed and treated, in part due to a lack of knowledge about the disease among healthcare providers.

  • The exact incidence and prevalence of Chagas disease in the country is unknown.

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that there are more than 300,000 cases in the United States.

    But that number only considers infections from immigrants or people who acquired the disease on a trip to Central or South America, not infections acquired locally.

In his own words

:

Chagas "disproportionately affects a marginalized community of immigrants, Latinx immigrants in the US, and our public health system has ignored them"

Daisy Hernández, journalist and author of 'The Kissing Bug'

Between the lines

: Chagas disease can be cured if treatment is given shortly after infection.

  • But since early symptoms are relatively common, healthcare providers may miss the diagnosis unless a specific blood test is done.

  • The disease can also go undetected because screenings are only done for blood donations, according to the American Society for Microbiology.

2. Hispanic heritage: The Puerto Rican who found the culprit of cavities

A Puerto Rican dentist was the first to discover

conclusive evidence of which bacteria cause tooth decay.

An X-ray image of a decayed tooth (left) and a photograph by Fernando Rodríguez (right). Courtesy of BSIP / Universal Images Group via Getty Images;

and the College of American Dentists

Why It Matters

: The discovery by Fernando E. Rodríguez Vargas, a senior Army officer, helped identify how oral hygiene and diet can influence the “periodic fluctuations” of lactobacilli that cause cavities.

  • In later publications he also helped develop oral iodine disinfection methods.

  • "His work on the specific bacteriology of dental caries has been the basis for much of the research in this field," wrote Willard Camalier, former president of the Washington DC Medical Service, of Rodríguez's finding.

Details

: In 1921, Rodríguez Vargas was at the Army School of Medicine when he set out to study the bacterial aspects of various dental diseases.

  • He was able to isolate the lactobacilli in decayed teeth, which he grew in cultures to see how they developed.

    His findings were published in 1922.

  • A plaque was unveiled in his honor in 1940 at the Army Medical School, now part of the Walter Reed complex, for his "distinguished service in dental disease research."

  • And the Army General Clinic in San Juan, Puerto Rico, bears his name.

More from Hispanic Heritage Month:

  • A System that makes music accessible

  • La Cajita Feliz migrated from Guatemala

  • Cuban literacy

  • The Colombian neurosurgeon who saved us from dementia

  • Chilean development behind vaccines

  • Fight crime with Argentine legacy

  • Thank you, Mexico, for your ingenuity

  • Peru feeds the world

3. An increased early risk of chronic lung disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease may develop

earlier in US Latinos than in other groups, according to a study that looked at risk factors for Hispanics under the age of 50.

Sarah Grillo / Axios

Why it matters

: COPD was the fourth leading cause of death in 2019, and having it is also one of the biggest risk factors for developing severe COVID-19, according to the CDC.

  • Emphysema and chronic bronchitis are among the diseases that block the airways and lead to COPD.

    It can also develop from smoking, recurrent sinusitis, or asthma.

  • There is no cure for COPD, but there are treatments, such as the use of inhalers or oxygen therapy.

Between the Lines

: Asthma was found to be the most prevalent risk factor for early COPD in US Latinos, but other analyzes have found that medications to control it are under-used and under-prescribed for Hispanic patients.

  • Don't forget

    : Latinos have the lowest percentage of access to health insurance in the United States.

The intrigue

: The study found that Latino immigrants were less predisposed to COPD, less likely to develop the disease early.

  • The researchers suggest that this could be due to less exposure to respiratory hazards, such as living near a highway, during the period of lung development of Latino immigrants.

4. Misinformation abounds among Latinos

Websites, social networks and applications used more by Latinos

in the US than by other groups make them more susceptible to both being exposed to misinformation and sharing it, according to a report by the media research and marketing company Nielsen.

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2021-10-14

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