American trypanosomiasis and electrocardiographic alterations among industrial workers in São Paulo, Brazil

In this article, we evaluate electrocardiographic (ECG) alterations among urban workers from a mechanical-metallurgical industry in São Paulo, Brazil. In a cross-sectional survey carried out in 1980, we found 2.2% positive serological testing for Trypanosoma cruzi infection among 27,081 workers. A comparison between seropositive workers and a random sample of seronegative workers frequency-matched by age and occupation revealed that seropositive workers had a much lower educational level, and that a higher proportion of seropositive workers had ECG abnormalities (42.7%) when compared to those negative for T. cruzi infection (19.8%). The high frequency of ECG abnormalities suggests the need to provide medical assistance to these workers, without any kind of discrimination and to bring in a form of management that would decrease this dangerous risk to the workers and people around them.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Goldbaum,Moisés, Ajimura,Fabio Yoshito, Litvoc,Júlio, Carvalho,Silvino Alves de, Eluf-Neto,José
Format:	Digital revista
Language:	English
Published:	Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo 2004
Online Access:	http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0036-46652004000600001
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