title: Prevalence and risk factors of embolic cerebrovascular events associated with Chagas heart disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patients with Chagas disease are at increased risk for stroke that may result in major clinical disability and death. Identification of risk factors involved in the genesis of thromboembolic events related to this disease may lead to improved therapeutic decision making and outcomes.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study sought to assess the prevalence of ischemic cerebrovascular events (ICE) among patients with Chagas heart disease and to identify the risk factors associated with cardioembolism in this population.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study involved 330 patients, 193 were men (58%), with a mean age of 49 ± 12 years with Chagas disease classified in the chronic cardiac form of the disease. Comprehensive echocardiography was performed to search a substrate for cardioembolic events, especially apical aneurysm and intracavitary thrombus.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most of the patients were classified as New York Heart Association classes I or II (75%) with mean left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction of 39 ± 14%. Sixty-seven patients had a previous ICE with the overall prevalence of 20%. Apical aneurysms were detected in 128 patients (39%), whereas LV mural thrombi were found in 48 patients (15%). In multivariate analysis including the potential predictors of ICE, apical aneurysm (adjusted odds ratio [OR]: 2.19, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.11 to 4.34; p = 0.024) and LV thrombus (adjusted OR: 2.43, 95% CI: 1.09 to 5.42; p = 0.030) emerged as important determinants of ICE, after adjusting for anticoagulation therapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In a selected population referred to a tertiary center for Chagas disease that included patients with different severities of cardiac involvement, the prevalence of ICE was 20%. The presence of apical aneurysm and intracavitary thrombus were independently associated with ICE, after adjustment for other risk factors for stroke.
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Electronic address: mcarmo@waymail.com.br.
authors.forename: Maria Carmo P
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Nunes
authors.affiliation: University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Lucas Jordan
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Kreuser
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Antonio Luiz
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Giovane Rodrigo
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Sousa
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Henrique Silveira
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fernando Antonio
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Botoni
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Aline Cristina
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: de Souza
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vitoria Emilia
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Gomes Marques
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Antonio B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Fernandez
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Antonio Lucio
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Teixeira
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Course of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School and Hospital das Clinicas of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Manoel Otávio
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: da Costa Rocha
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002598:Chagas Cardiomyopathy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D006322:Heart Aneurysm / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D006352:Heart Ventricles; D006801:Humans; D020766:Intracranial Embolism / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013927:Thrombosis / Q000453:epidemiology*