[Chagas disease--review of 8 simultaneous cases of acute Chagas myocarditis: 25 years later].

Purpose: To analyse the evolution of 8 cases of Chagas' disease after a microepidemy of 17 cases which occurred in Teotonia-RS-in 1965 and to discuss the importance of oral contamination in Chagas' disease.

Methods: All 8 patients are followed at the IC/FUC-RS-Brazil since 1980. Clinical examinations, blood tests, ECG, Cx-Ray and Echo were made in 1991.

Results: None of the eight cases presented any sign of chronic Chagas' disease manifestation. The blood tests, ECG, Cx-Ray and Echo were normals. Only one case showed a immunofluorescence of 1/20.

Conclusion: 1) The follow-up after 25 years in all the 8 cases did not show clinical alterations or any chronic manifestation of Chagas' disease. All the tests performed had normal results; 2) the oral transmission must be considered definitive in Chagas' disease.