Quantitative analysis of cardiac lesions in chronic canine chagasic cardiomyopathy

Lesions observed in chronic chagasic cardiopathy frequently produce electrocardiographic alterations and affect cardiac function. Through a computerized morphometrical analysis we quantified the areas occupied by cardiac muscle, connective and adipose tissues in the right atrium of dogs experimental...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo Vol. 44; no. 5; pp. 273 - 278
Main Authors:	Caliari, Marcelo Vidigal, do Pilar Machado, Raquel, de Lana, Marta, Caja, Rosângela Aparecida França, Carneiro, Cláudia Martins, Bahia, Maria Teresinha, dos Santos, César Augusto Bueno, Magalhaes, Gustavo Albergaria, Sampaio, Ivan Barbosa Machado, Tafuri, Washington Luiz
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Brazil Instituto de Medicina Tropical de Sao Paulo 01-10-2002 Instituto de Medicina Tropical Universidade de São Paulo (USP)
Subjects:	Adipose Tissue - parasitology Animals Chagas Cardiomyopathy - parasitology Chagas Cardiomyopathy - pathology Chagasic cardiomyopathy Chronic Disease Congestive cardiac insufficiency Connective Tissue - parasitology Disease Models, Animal Dogs Fibrosis Myocarditis Myocarditis - parasitology Myocarditis - pathology Myocardium - pathology TROPICAL MEDICINE Trypanosoma cruzi Trypanosoma cruzi - pathogenicity Myocarditis Congestive cardiac insufficiency Chagasic cardiomyopathy Fibrosis Trypanosoma cruzi
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Summary:	Lesions observed in chronic chagasic cardiopathy frequently produce electrocardiographic alterations and affect cardiac function. Through a computerized morphometrical analysis we quantified the areas occupied by cardiac muscle, connective and adipose tissues in the right atrium of dogs experimentally infected with Trypanosoma cruzi. All of the infected dogs showed chronic myocarditis with variable reduction levels of cardiac muscle, fibrosis and adipose tissue replacement. In the atrial myocardium of dogs infected with Be78 and Be62 cardiac muscle represented 34 and 50%, fibrosis 28 and 32% and adipose tissue 38 and 18%, respectively. The fibrosis observed was both diffuse and focal and mostly intrafascicular, either partially or completely interrupting the path of muscle bundles. Such histological alterations probably contributed to the appearance of electrocardiographic disturbances verified in 10 out 11 dogs which are also common in human chronic chagasic cardiopathy. Fibrosis was the most important microscopic occurrence found since it produces rearrangements of collagen fibers in relation to myocardiocytes which causes changes in anatomical physiognomy and mechanical behavior of the myocardium. These abnormalities can contribute to the appearance of cardiac malfunction, arrythmias and congestive cardiac insufficiency as observed in two of the analyzed dogs. Strain Be78 caused destruction of atrial cardiac muscle higher than that induced by strain Be62.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	0036-4665 1678-9946 0036-4665 1678-9946
DOI:	10.1590/S0036-46652002000500008