According to the World Health Organization, the number of people infected with Trypanosoma Cruzi is estimated between 6 and 7 million, the causative agent of Chagas disease, and in 80 million people exposed to the risk of affectation.
The approximate entropy was used to quantify the regularity of the tachograms of patients with Chagas disease. The study population consisted of three groups of volunteers: 35 controls (C), 36 patients with positive serology without cardiac involvement diagnosed by conventional non-invasive methods (CH1) and 27 patients with positive serology and mild to moderate incipient heart failure (CH2). Clinical evaluation, Machado-Gerreiro serology examination, chest x-rays, echocardiogram, electrocardiogram and ambulatory record Holter (24 hours), were made to the three groups. We analyzed RR segments of 5 minutes,270 segments, corresponding to 24 hours per patient.
We found significant differences between the Control and CH2 groups, which is used to stratify risk in the CH1 group.