[Male sex. Prognostic factor in Chagas' disease].

PURPOSE

To verify if the ventricular function and the incidence of arrhythmias in patients of both sexes could be predominant in male patients with Chagas' disease.

METHODS

Six hundred and thirty one patients were studied, 329 female and 302 male, with age of 10 to 64 years old (mean 40). All patients were submitted to M mode echocardiographic study to analyse the ejection fraction (EF). To verify the importance of the ventricular dysfunction in male and female patients, they were divided according to the EF in three groups: A) normal EF, B) EF between 0.64 and 0.45 and C) EF less than 0.44. The incidence of ventricular tachycardia was analyzed at the stress test or 24h Holter studies.

RESULTS

The number of patients with depressed EF was more frequent on male patients (p < 0.0001). The incidence of ventricular tachycardia was similar in both sexes, however it was more frequent in patients with ventricular dysfunction.

CONCLUSION

Our results show that there are greater myocardial dysfunction on male patients, what could explain the worse prognosis observed on patients of this sex.