[Basic causes of death in elderly patients with Chagas' disease].

The main causes of death of 100 elderly Chagas' patients (group A), of 100 elderly non-Chagas' disease (group B) and of 100 non-elderly Chagas' disease patients (group C) were surveyed clinically and by postmortem data. Compared to B, the A group showed significantly more deaths due to chronic Chagas' heart disease and digestive "megas", and less frequently to malignant neoplasm. Deaths due to pulmonary emphysema and malignant neoplasms were significantly more common and deaths due to chronic Chagas' heart disease were significantly less common in the A group when compared to the C group. Chronic Chagas' heart disease caused 26 unexpected sudden deaths in the C group (the younger patients) and none in the A group (the eldest patients).