Blood transfusion
Blood transfusion was formerly the second-most common mode of transmission for Chagas disease. can survive in refrigerated stored blood, and can survive freezing and thawing, allowing it to persist in whole blood, packed red blood cells, granulocytes, cryoprecipitate, and platelets. The development and implementation of blood bank screening tests has dramatically reduced the risk of infection during blood transfusion. Nearly all blood donations in Latin American countries undergo Chagas screening. Widespread screening is also common in non-endemic nations with significant populations of immigrants from endemic areas including the United Kingdom (implemented in 1999), Spain (2005), the United States (2007), France and Sweden (2009), Switzerland (2012), and Belgium (2013). Blood is tested using serological tests, typically ELISAs, to detect antibodies against proteins.