Diego Ricardo Xavier

Increased Hospitalizations for Neuropathies as Indicators of Zika Virus Infection, according to Health Information System Data, Brazil

Neurologic manifestations of Zika infection must be adequately recognized and treated; our study methods can be used for monitoring and warning systems.

Hospital morbidity due to paracoccidioidomycosis in Brazil (1998–2006)

To analyse hospital morbidity records due to paracoccidioidomycosis in Brazil, including its nationwide distribution in time and space, as well as key epidemiological and sociodemographic characteristics.

The Expansion of the Economic Frontier and the Diffusion of Violence in the Amazon

Over the last few decades, the occupation of the Amazon and the expansion of large-scale economic activities have exerted a significant negative impact on the Amazonian environment and on the health of the Amazon’s inhabitants. These processes have altered the context of the manifestation of health problems in time and space and changed the characteristics of the spatial diffusion of health problems in the region. This study analyzed the relationships between the various economic processes of territorial occupation in the Amazon and the spatial diffusion of homicidal violence through the configuration of networks of production, as well as the movements of population and merchandise. Statistical data on violence, deforestation, the production of agricultural items, and socio-economic variables, georeferenced and available for the 771 municipalities of the Legal Amazon were used in this study. The results suggest that the diffusion of violence closely follows the economic expansion front, which is related to deforestation and livestock production but has little relation to grain production, demonstrating steps and typologies of recent occupation in the Amazon that promote violence. These spatial patterns reveal environmental and socio-economic macro-determinants that materialize in geographic space through the construction of highways and the formation of city networks.

Situação da malária na tríplice fronteira entre Brasil, Colômbia e Peru

This article aims to analyze the malaria surveillance situation on the triple border between Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. This was a qualitative study using questionnaires in the border towns in 2011. The results were analyzed with the SWOT matrix methodology, pointing to significant differences between the malaria surveillance systems along the border. Weaknesses included lack of linkage between actors, lack of trained personnel, high turnover in teams, and lack of malaria specialists in the local hospitals. The study also showed lack of knowledge on malaria and its prevention in the local population. The strengths are the inclusion of new institutional actors, improvement of professional training, distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets, and possibilities for complementary action between surveillance systems through cooperation between health teams on the border. Malaria control can only be successful if the region is dealt with as a whole.O objetivo deste artigo e analisar a situacao da vigilância da malaria na triplice fronteira entre Brasil, Colombia e Peru. E um estudo qualitativo com aplicacao de questionarios em cidades da fronteira realizado em 2011. Os resultados foram analisados pela metodologia DOFA e apontaram diferencas significativas entre os sistemas de vigilância da malaria na fronteira. Observou-se como debilidades a desarticulacao entre atores responsaveis, a insuficiencia de pessoal treinado, a alta rotatividade das equipes e a falta de medicos especialistas em malaria nos hospitais locais. Verificou-se ainda o desconhecimento sobre a malaria e suas formas de prevencao na populacao entrevistada. As fortalezas sao a insercao de novos atores institucionais, a melhora da qualificacao profissional, a distribuicao de mosquiteiros impregnados e possibilidades de complementaridade entre os sistemas de vigilância a serem aproveitadas pela cooperacao entre as equipes de saude da fronteira, pois o controle da malaria so pode ter sucesso tomando-se esta regiao em seu conjunto.

Organização, disponibilização e possibilidades de análise de dados sobre desastres de origem climática e seus impactos sobre a saúde no Brasil

A ocorrencia de desastres muitas vezes e associada a processos naturais imprevisiveis. No entanto, a analise de grandes bases de dados permite mostrar tendencias sazonais e de longo prazo, bem como padroes e areas onde se concentram riscos. Neste trabalho e descrito o processo de aquisicao e organizacao de dados sobre desastres, coletados pelos orgaos de defesa civil, e disponibilizados pelo Observatorio Nacional de Clima e Saude. As analises preliminares mostram a concentracao de eventos desastres causados por chuvas intensas ao longo da costa brasileira, principalmente durante o verao. As secas apresentam maior duracao e extensao, atingindo grande parte do sul e nordeste do pais. Estes dados podem ser usados para analisar e monitorar o impacto de eventos climaticos extremos sobre a saude, bem como seus determinantes de vulnerabilidade e clima.

Difusão espaço-tempo do dengue no Município do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, no período de 2000-2013

Resumo: A cidade do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, apresenta elevado potencial de receptividade para a introducao, disseminacao e persistencia da transmissao de dengue. A ocupacao do municipio conformou um mosaico heterogeneo e diversificado, com distribuicao vetorial diferenciada entre e dentro dos bairros, proporcionando epidemias distintas nesta escala de observacao. Este trabalho busca identificar essas epidemias e o padrao de difusao da transmissao do dengue sob a dimensao de tempo e espaco. Foi utilizado um modelo para a identificacao de epidemias considerando os anos e meses de pico epidemico, a distribuicao espacial e a permanencia das epidemias levando-se em conta o periodo de janeiro de 2000 a dezembro de 2013. Foram contabilizados 495 picos epidemicos, e na escala de tempo evidenciou-se maior ocorrencia nos meses de marco, abril e fevereiro, respectivamente. Alguns bairros parecem apresentar um quadro persistente de incidencia de dengue e o comportamento da difusao da doenca permite identificar trajetorias e meses oportunos para a intervencao.

Cobertura de mamografias, alocação e uso de equipamentos nas Regiões de Saúde

Mammography screening is the most important means to detect breast cancer. It is relevant to understand how this screening has been performed in Brazilian Health Regions, which are the fundamental spatial unity in the current health policy. The analysis of indicators related to the coverage of women from 40 to 69 years of age, number, distribution and degree of usage of mammography equipment show great problems in covering the targeted population, which cannot be explained only by the lack of equipment. The diversity of situations of the Health Regions and federal units is highlighted, showing better conditions in the Southeast and South and worse in the other regions.

Eventos climáticos extremos e consequências sobre a saúde: o desastre de 2008 em Santa Catarina segundo diferentes fontes de informação

There is trend of increasing the frequency and severity of extreme climate events and related disasters. The objective of this paper is to analyze the health impacts due to the flood occurred in November 2008 in Santa Catarina (southern Brazil) and the underlying social processes behind the disaster. The method consisted in the recovery and analysis of information from different sources (health services, civil protection and the newspapers), for the municipalities affected by the disaster. The results demonstrate that the immediate effects are just one part of health effects that extend over the medium and long term, expressing the underlying social, environmental and institutional vulnerabilities and lack of resilience to disasters. In conclusion we point to the various vulnerabilities that must be addressed to reduce the impact of natural disasters, involving the development agendas, and climate vulnerability reduction.

[Malaria in the triple border region between Brazil, Colombia and Peru].

This article aims to analyze the malaria surveillance situation on the triple border between Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. This was a qualitative study using questionnaires in the border towns in 2011. The results were analyzed with the SWOT matrix methodology, pointing to significant differences between the malaria surveillance systems along the border. Weaknesses included lack of linkage between actors, lack of trained personnel, high turnover in teams, and lack of malaria specialists in the local hospitals. The study also showed lack of knowledge on malaria and its prevention in the local population. The strengths are the inclusion of new institutional actors, improvement of professional training, distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets, and possibilities for complementary action between surveillance systems through cooperation between health teams on the border. Malaria control can only be successful if the region is dealt with as a whole.O objetivo deste artigo e analisar a situacao da vigilância da malaria na triplice fronteira entre Brasil, Colombia e Peru. E um estudo qualitativo com aplicacao de questionarios em cidades da fronteira realizado em 2011. Os resultados foram analisados pela metodologia DOFA e apontaram diferencas significativas entre os sistemas de vigilância da malaria na fronteira. Observou-se como debilidades a desarticulacao entre atores responsaveis, a insuficiencia de pessoal treinado, a alta rotatividade das equipes e a falta de medicos especialistas em malaria nos hospitais locais. Verificou-se ainda o desconhecimento sobre a malaria e suas formas de prevencao na populacao entrevistada. As fortalezas sao a insercao de novos atores institucionais, a melhora da qualificacao profissional, a distribuicao de mosquiteiros impregnados e possibilidades de complementaridade entre os sistemas de vigilância a serem aproveitadas pela cooperacao entre as equipes de saude da fronteira, pois o controle da malaria so pode ter sucesso tomando-se esta regiao em seu conjunto.

Hanseníase em menores de quinze anos em municípios prioritários, Mato Grosso, Brasil

OBJECTIVES We aimed to compare the sociodemographic, clinical and epidemiological characteristics of individuals under the age of 15, reported to have leprosy, and who lived in priority and non-priority cities, as well as to compare the spatial distribution of these reported cases in such cities. This is a cross-sectional study of new leprosy cases in individuals under the age of 15 (n=429) registered in the Information System for Notifiable Diseases from the State of Mato Grosso, Brazil, between 2011 and 2013. The diagnosed cases were compared regarding sociodemographic, clinical and epidemiological aspects using the chi-square test at a 5% significance level. The spatial distribution was made through ArcGIS 10.2 software. RESULTS Of the 141 assessed cities in the state, according to the spatial distribution, 58.1% (n=82) showed a high, very high and hyper-endemic mean incidence coefficient, and, of these, 34.1% (n=28) include the group of priority municipalities. Of the new cases included in the study, 73.9% (n=317) were reported in priority cities. We observed a difference in the proportion of cases registered among the cities, with a greater proportion in priority cities, in the age group from five to nine years old (χ²=4.09; p=0.043), in the white race (χ²=7.01; p=0.008) and in the tuberculoid clinical form (χ²=3.89; p=0.048). There was a greater proportion in non-priority cases with regard to non-urban areas (χ²=24.23; p<0.001), two to five skin lesions (χ²=5.93; p=0.014) and spontaneous demand (χ²=6.16; p=0.013). CONCLUSION The differences highlighted regarding clinical and epidemiological characteristics between the cities demonstrate the difficulty of endemic control in both municipality groups.