Drastic reduction in the notification of acute cases of Chagas disease in the Northeast region of Brazil. Epidemiological evaluation in the period 2001–2021

• Published in: Acta tropica 2024-08, Vol.256, p.107267, Article 107267
• Main Authors: Santos, Laryssa Bezerra, da Silva, Julyane Corato, Abdala, Maria Gabriela Gomes, da Silva, Marina Taissa Santiago, de Souza, José Jeferson Gomes, de Lima, Ana Rachel Vasconcelos, Borges, Alessandra Abel, Silva-Júnior, Abelardo, Bassi, Ênio José, Damasceno, Flávia S., Vital, Marcos Vinicius Carneiro, Ribeiro-Andrade, Müller, Silva, Maria Cláudia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acute Disease - epidemiology; Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Brazil - epidemiology; Chagas disease; Chagas Disease - epidemiology; Chagas Disease - transmission; Child; Child, Preschool; Disease Notification - statistics & numerical data; Epidemiology; Female; Humans; Incidence; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Male; Middle Aged; Northeast Brazil; Notifiable Diseases Information System; Notification; Trypanosoma cruzi; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0001-706X; 1873-6254; 1873-6254
• DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2024.107267

•Chagas disease (CD) is endemic to the Northeast region of Brazil.•Notification of acute CD in the Notifiable Diseases Information System (SINAN), is mandatory.•From 2001 to 2006, a total of 1303 cases of acute CD were reported to the SINAN.•From 2007 to 2021, a total of 141 cases of acute CD were reported to the SINAN.•During the analyzed period, all known routes of infection were reported in Northeast Brazil. Chagas disease (CD), caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi), is a neglected disease endemic to some Latin American countries, including Brazil. Soon after infection, individuals develop an acute phase, which in most cases is asymptomatic and may go undetected. However, when CD is detected early, notification in the Notifiable Diseases Information System (SINAN), is mandatory. This study aimed to evaluate the information registered in the SINAN database and to determine the epidemiological profile of acute CD in Northeast Brazil, an endemic region, from 2001 to 2021. According to this survey, 1,444 cases of acute CD were reported in the Northeastern region of Brazil during this period. During the first six years, referred to as period 1, 90.24% of the notifications were registered, while the number of notifications significantly decreased in the subsequent years, referred to as period 2. Most individuals diagnosed with acute CD were Afro-Brazilian adults. All known routes of infection by the parasite were reported. Vector-borne transmission was predominant during period 1 (73.29%) and oral transmission during period 2 (58.87%). All nine states in Northeast Brazil reported cases in both periods. A higher incidence of disease was reported in Rio Grande do Norte (RN) during period 1, and in Maranhão (MA) during period 2. Our results show that CD remains a significant public health challenge.