ASPECTOS EPIDEMIOLÓGICOS E AMBIENTAIS DA LEISHMANIOSE VISCERAL EM MENORES DE 15 ANOS, NO PERÍODO DE 2007 A 2012, NO MUNICÍPIO DE ARAGUAÍNA, TOCANTINS, BRASIL.

Abstract

Introduction: The main objective of this study is to demonstrate the epidemiological and environmental characteristics of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in children under 15 years of age in the period from 2007 to 2012. Methods: Descriptive, cross-sectional epidemiological study of VL cases in children under 15 years of age, diagnosed at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases (Araguaína) in the period from 2007 to 2012. Clinical data were gathered from medical reports; meteorological data were obtained at the Meteorological Measurement Department of the Federal University of Tocantins. Results: The study assessed 821 medical reports of patients under 15 years of age diagnosed with VL. The disease affected both genders, with no significant difference (p= 0.67); the urban area had the highest prevalence of the disease (99.03%; p=0.0001); the most affected ethnic group was mixed (pardo) race (85.5%) (p=0.0001). The age group with the highest prevalence of the disease was between 1 and 5 years (58.6%) (p=0.0001). The most used diagnostic criterion was laboratorial (92.3%) (p=0.0001). The Araguaína Sul primary healthcare unit had the record with the highest rate of cases (20.8%). The highest incidence rate occurred in 2008, following a reduction showing a negative and significant correlation (p<0.04). The highest incidence coefficient occurred in the age group of under 1 year of age, while the highest mortality and lethality coefficients took place in 2008 and 2011. Most patients (96.2%) reached the cure of the disease. Regarding mortality, the most affected age group was between one and five years of age (47.8%). The climatic condition had a small effect on the epidemiology of the disease. Conclusions: In Araguaína, visceral leishmaniasis is an urban-based, endemic disease, with higher prevalence in children between one and five years of age, showing a high incidence coefficient and strongly contributing to child mortality rates. Among the environmental factors assessed by this study, temperature was the one aspect that influenced the VL incidence coefficient, showing that milder temperatures may increase the number of cases of this disease.