title: Pathogenesis of chronic Chagas cardiomyopathy: the role of coronary microvascular derangements.
abstract: There is ample experimental and clinical evidence of functional and structural microvascular abnormalities occurring in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy, possibly due to the inflammatory process and/or autonomic disturbances caused by Trypanosoma cruzi infection. Those microvascular derangements are likely to constitute at least an ancillary factor that potentiates and amplifies the chronic inflammation in myocardial tissue. It is possible to devise appropriate therapeutic interventions aimed at reverting or slowing the progression of the microvascular abnormalities to positively affect the natural history of Chagas cardiomyopathy.
authors.forename: José Antonio
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Marin-Neto
authors.forename: Marcus Vinicius
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Simões
authors.forename: Anis
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rassi Junior
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001341:Autonomic Nervous System / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002598:Chagas Cardiomyopathy / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D003326:Coronary Circulation / Q000502:physiology; D003331:Coronary Vessels; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D018450:Disease Progression; D006801:Humans; D008833:Microcirculation / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats