Key result
Evoked potentials in 75 patients with chronic Chagas' disease revealed prolonged time intervals between waves N13 and N20 (2 patients) and waves III and V (7 patients), suggesting CNS involvement.
Why the study?
Do patients with chronic Chagas' disease exhibit abnormalities in cerebral evoked potentials?
Observational (n=75)
Do patients with chronic Chagas' disease exhibit abnormalities in cerebral evoked potentials?
Chronic Chagas' disease may be associated with central nervous system involvement, as evidenced by prolonged time intervals in cerebral evoked potentials.
May indicate CNS involvement in chronic Chagas' disease; leaves open clinical relevance pending prospective validation.
Seventy five patients with the diagnosis of chronic Chagas' disease were studied by employing EPs techniques. Two of them had delayed arrival of the signal to the Erb's point and one to the spinal cord when looking at SEPs. Two patients had increment of the time interval between waves Ist and IIIrd, when studying PEATs. These findings were interpreted as due to peripheral nerve fibers damage, a feature described in previous papers. The most striking finding was the prolonged time interval between waves N13 and N20 (SEPs) found in two patients and between waves IIIrd and Vth (PEAT) seen in 7 affected subjects. These observations suggested the development of some sort of CNS involvement, perhaps related to myelin damage, in patients who reached the chronic state of the infection.
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Genovese et al. (1989) conducted an observational in Chronic Chagas' disease (n=75). Evoked potentials techniques was evaluated on Abnormalities in evoked potentials (delayed signal arrival and prolonged time intervals). Evoked potentials in 75 patients with chronic Chagas' disease revealed prolonged time intervals between waves N13 and N20 (2 patients) and waves III and V (7 patients), suggesting CNS involvement.
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