[Chagas disease in Virgem da Lapa, Minas Gerais, Brazil. IV. Clinical and epidemiological aspects of left ventricular aneurism].

The study aimed at the evaluation of the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of the aneurysm found in the left ventricle in chronic Chagas' disease patients. Three hundred, eighty eight people (298 chagasic patients and 90 randomly selected healthy individuals) were submitted to echocardiography. The ventricular function was assessed in the M mode by calculating the fraction of ejection, and in the bidimensional mode by analyzing he global systolic function. Segmental contractility was evaluated according to the method described by American Society of Echocardiography. Aneurysm of the left ventricle was diagnosed in 58 (18.8%) patients, all from the chagasic population. From these, 38 (12.7%) were found in the apical segment; 10 (3.4%) in the interventricular septum; and 2 (0.7%) each in the posterior wall; the inferior wall; apico-septal; and inferior-posterior. We could not observe any significant difference for the aneurysm frequencies in relation to age group, gender and race, and no association between aneurysm and arterial hypertension could be made. Of the 56 individuals presenting aneurysm, 55 (98.2%) were symptomatic with predominant palpitations; 53 (94.6%) showed an aberrant ECG with predominant ventricular extra-systoles followed by changes in conduction; and 34 (60.%) showed an impairment of the ventricular function, regardless of the affected segment. In view of these results we consider the apical aneurysm of the left ventricle as a marker of Chagas' disease and as an indicator of high morbidity of the human T. cruzi infection in Virgem da Lapa.