Medical experts say little is known about an illness that is caused by blood sucking insects that leaves symptoms similar to that of AIDS.

The parasitic illness, which is called Chagas Disease, is said to have the similarities to the early spread of HIV and it is difficult to detect and can take years for the symptoms to emerge.

According to the New York Times, about 8 million people worldwide currently have the disease and most of the sufferers are in Bolivia, Mexico, Columbia and Central America, but about 30,000 people are living in the U.S.

So far, experts have been able to trace the disease, which is also called Trypanosomiasis, to people in America who are either immigrants or live in poverty stricken areas.

If caught early enough, the disease can be cured with an intense 3-month drug treatment; however, because of the lengthy incubation period, the disease often goes untreated for long period.

When infected bugs bite a person, they leave behind T. cruzi parasites on the skin. The parasites can then enter your body through your eyes, mouth, a cut or scratch, or the wound from the bug’s bite. Scratching or rubbing the bite site helps the parasites enter your body. Once in your body, the parasites multiply and spread.

You may also become infected by:

• Eating uncooked food contaminated with feces from T. cruzi-infected bugs
• Being born to a woman infected with T. cruzi
• Having a blood transfusion containing infected blood
• Getting an organ transplant containing viable T. cruzi
• Working in a laboratory where there’s an accidental exposure to the parasite
• Spending time in a forest that contains infected wild animals, such as raccoons and opossums
• Being with an infected pet.

Chagas disease can be acute or chronic. Symptoms range from mild to severe, although many people don’t experience symptoms until the chronic stage.

Acute phase
The acute phase of Chagas disease, which lasts for weeks or months, may be symptom-free. When signs and symptoms do occur, they are usually mild and may include:

• Swelling at the infection site
• Fever
• Fatigue
• Rash
• Body aches
• Headache
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea, diarrhea or vomiting
• Swollen glands
• Enlargement of your liver or spleen

Signs and symptoms that develop during the acute phase usually go away on their own. However, if untreated, the infection persists and advances to the chronic phase.

Chronic phase
Signs and symptoms of the chronic phase of Chagas disease may occur 10 to 20 years after initial infection, or they may never occur. In severe cases, however, Chagas disease signs and symptoms may include:

• Irregular heartbeat
• Inflamed, enlarged heart (cardiomyopathy)
• Congestive heart failure
• Sudden cardiac arrest
• Difficulty swallowing due to enlarged esophagus
• Abdominal pain or constipation due to enlarged colon

Connecticut’s First Lady Cathy Malloy was arrested last week for not wearing her seatbelt.

A senior advisor to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said Mrs. Malloy was issued a ticket in Hartford last week for not wearing her seatbelt while driving.

Although she was not handcuffed and taken off to jail, by definition, *when a person is stopped from his/her normal activities by virtue of a legal authority or sanction, either by detaining him/her or by stopping his/her external accesses, they are technically speaking been arrested.

Connecticut is in the midst of a heightened-awareness period for seatbelt violations because of the National Click It Or Ticket campaign that’s in effect from May 21 through June 3.

*Lega-Explanations.com

Without makeup Katy Perry is still a pretty woman, but gosh, she looks like a completely different person.

The singer released this photo of herself with a clean, fresh face being fitted for wardrobe for her upcoming tour film “Part Of Me”.

During an interview with Ellen about her film, the 27-year-old singer said “when you see the film, it’s a bit scary because there’s a lot of shots of me bloated with zits and normal.”

She went on to say “I think it’s important to start breaking down the idea that to achieve your dream you always have to be perfect or flawless or live in some kind of fantasy world. So that’s why I decided to put everything into the film.”

This is why I like Katy!

When it comes to men, Bajan singer Rihanna is like Macy’s main entrance revolving door.  There are always people entering and then leaving.

Rumor has it that the singer is now dating NBA player J.R. Smith, and I am using the word dating very loosely, because this is a nice word for what the raunchy singer does with men.

They both look like a poster for the CDC’s contiguous diseases.

Rihanna and the Knicks player were first spotted together earlier this month at a nightclub in Manhattan, and they were spotted again over the holiday weekend at LIV nightclub in the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami.

Just before the two lovebirds were spotted in Miami, J.R. was arrested on Thursday on an outstanding bench warrant for driving without a valid driver’s license.

He was released on Friday.

Rihanna, who is still having sex with Chris Brown, told friends she will continue to see other guys until Chris ends his relationship with main squeeze of moment Karreuche Tran.

As a prank, a Brazilian man painted himself green in an attempt to look like his favorite superhero “The Hulk”, however, he painted him in oil paint.

Enrique dos Santos, a swimming pool attendant, used the paint that is meant for ballistic missiles and nuclear submarines and now the paint will not wash off.

With help from his mother, friends and neighbors, Santos scrubbed his skin for 24 hours but most of the stain is still on.

No word on whether a green Santos will be able to keep his job.