title: Motor unit involvement in human acute Chagas' disease.
abstract: Thirty five patients with acute Chagas' disease who demonstrated parasitaemia at the time of the investigation were submitted to a detailed electromyographical study. With their muscles at rest, 12 patients showed fibrillation potentials and/or positive sharp waves. On volitional contraction, 7 had short duration motor unit potentials (MUPs) and low polyphasic MUPs. On motor and sensory nerve fibers conduction studies, 20 disclosed values below the lower control limit within one or more nerves. Finally, 12 patients produced a muscle decremental response on nerve supramaximal repetitive stimulation. The findings signal that primary muscle involvement, neuropathy and impairement of the neuromuscular transmission, either isolated or combined, may be found in the acute stage of human Chagas' disease.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Enfermedad de Chagas y Patología Regional, Hospital Independencia, Santiago del Estero, Argentina.
authors.forename: O R
authors.initials: OR
authors.lastname: Benavente
authors.forename: O L
authors.initials: OL
authors.lastname: Patiño
authors.forename: L B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Peña
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lugònes
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kalala
authors.forename: C R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Meneclier
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Genovese
authors.forename: R E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Sica
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004576:Electromyography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D009469:Neuromuscular Junction / Q000503:physiopathology; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009435:Synaptic Transmission