Disease experts are keeping a close eye on the “kissing bug” out of fears of what could soon be classified as an endemic in the United States, according to a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report .

Chagas disease, transmitted by the Trypanosoma cruzi parasite, is already endemic in 21 countries in the Americas. The parasite’s presence is growing in the U.S., the CDC’s September issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases journal reports.

Transmission of the disease occurs when people unknowingly scratch or rub bug feces into a bite wound, their eyes, or their mouth. The disease cannot spread through casual contact between people.

In the disease’s acute phase, shortly after infection, symptoms could include eyelid swelling, fever, fatigue, body aches, headache, rash, loss

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