The COVID-19 pandemic brings to light the reality of the Brazilian health system. The underreporting of COVID-19 deaths in the state of Minas Gerais (MG), where the second largest population of the country is concentrated, reveals government unpreparedness, as there is a low capacity of testing in the population, which prevents the real understanding of the general panorama of SARS-CoV-2 dissemination. The goals of this research are to analyze the causes of deaths in different Brazilian government databases (Civil Registry Transparency Portal and InfoGripe) and to assess whether there are sub-records showing an unexpected increase in the frequency of deaths from causes clinically similar to COVID-19. A descriptive and quantitative analysis of the number of deaths by COVID-19 and similar causes was performed in different databases. Our results demonstrate that different official sources had a discrepancy of 109.45% between these data referring to the same period. There was also a 758.57% increase in SARI deaths in 2020, when compared to the average of previous years. Finally, it was shown that there was an increase in the rate of pneumonia and respiratory insufficiency (RI) by 6.34 and 6.25%, respectively. In conclusion, there is an underreporting of COVID-19 deaths in MG due to the unexplained excess of deaths caused by SARI, respiratory insufficiency, and pneumonia compared to previous years.

The COVID-19 pandemic brings to light the reality of the Brazilian health system. The underreporting of COVID-19 deaths in the state of Minas Gerais (MG), where is concentrated the second largest population of the country, reveals government unpreparedness, as there is a low capacity of testing in the population, which prevents the real understanding of the general panorama of Sars-Cov-2 dissemination. The goals of this research are to analyze the causes of deaths in the different Brazilian government databases (ARPEN and SINAN) and to assess whether there are sub-records shown by the unexpected increase in the frequency of deaths from causes clinically similar to COVID-19. A descriptive and quantitative analysis of the number of COVID-19 deaths and similar causes was made in different databases. Ours results demonstrate that the different official sources had a discrepancy of 209.23% between these data referring to the same period. There was also a 648.61% increase in SARS deaths in 2020, when compared to the average of previous years. Finally, it was shown that there was an increase in the rate of pneumonia and respiratory insufficiency (RI) by 5.36% and 5.72%, respectively. In conclusion, there is an underreporting of COVID-19 deaths in MG due to the unexplained excess of SARS deaths, Respiratory insufficiency and pneumonia compared to previous years.

Introdução: A pandemia pela COVID-19 em Minas Gerais (MG) acarretou na redução da procura por atendimentos médicos, como consultas ambulatoriais, exames e cirurgias eletivas, em resposta às estratégias de contingência. Objetivo: Analisar as mortes por causas respiratórias e cardiovasculares durante o primeiro semestre de 2020 ocorridas em domicílios e em hospitais de MG. Método: As causas de óbitos foram analisadas por meio dos dados do Portal da Transparência do Registro Civil (ARPEN) das semanas epidemiológicas 1 à 23. Resultados: Constatou-se que, comparativamente ao mesmo período de 2019, houve acréscimo nas mortes domiciliares por pneumonia (17,59%), insuficiência respiratória (IR) (20,65%), síndrome respiratória aguda grave (SRAG) (20,69%), sepse (31,91%), infarto agudo do miocárdio (IAM) (15,56%), acidente vascular cerebral (AVC) (18,29%) e por outras causas cardiovasculares (18,44%) em 2020. Já em relação aos óbitos hospitalares, constatou-se redução das mortes por pneumonia (6,08%), por IR (3,59%) e por sepse (2,21%), apesar do incremento de 338,30% por SRAG. Além disso, encontrou-se decréscimo de 3,02% dos óbitos por AVC, e do crescimento de 3,41% por IAM e de 2,93% para outras causas cardiovasculares. Em relação à faixa etária e ao sexo, independentemente do local do óbito, predominou homens com idade entre 75 e 80 anos. Discussão e Conclusões: Acredita-se que parte desses óbitos esteja relacionada à reestruturação da dinâmica do atendimento hospitalar, associada ao medo de procurar assistência e infectar-se pelo novo coronavírus. Conclui-se que houve aumento de mortes domiciliares e redução das mortes hospitalares em 2020 por causas respiratórias e cardiovasculares em meio ao contexto da pandemia.

Análise de óbitos domiciliares e hospitalares por causas respiratórias e cardiovasculares durante a pandemia da COVID-19 em Minas Gerais Analysis of home and hospital deaths from respiratory and cardiovascular causes during the COVID-19 pandemic in Minas Gerais

Falls are one of the most common mechanisms of injury namely at home and in leisure time reaching one of the most vulnerable groups of the population such as the older ones, with expression in morbidity and mortality. The pandemic context we are experiencing it has had effects on the physical, mental and social wellbeing of populations but also on the use of health care whose magnitude and reasons are subject of discussion. The aim of this study is to understand the evolution of falls episodes in victims aged 65 and over, which needed attendance in the emergency room of the Health National Service Hospitals in Portugal based on hospital records, through EVITA system, between 2017 and 2020. A descriptive analysis of the data was performed, with the determination of absolute and relative frequencies (percentages). Bivariate comparisons were performed using Pearson's chi-square test with a significance level of 5%. In this analysis, the statistical program SPSS V.24 was used. In the four years between 2017 and 2020 the older people aged 65 and over represented 27% of the total of attendances in the emergency room. Considering the total of ED attendances in this age group 10% occurred due to fall at home or during leisure time. In the last four years there were 462 953 falls in people victims aged 65+, constituting 46% of hospital ED attendances by fall. From march to december 2020, falls episodes have remained below the values of similar periods in the previous four years (p < 0,01). The largest percentage decrease in falls in 2020 compared to the same period in 2019 occurred in april, with a decrease of 41%. Most of this falls in the study population occurred at home (61%), followed by falls in outdoor spaces (11%). Globally, this reality regarding to the decrease of the ED attendances during this pandemic context is not exclusive to Portugal. Key messages The older people represented 27% of the total of attendances in the emergency room in the four years in analysis. 10% of ED attendances occurred due to fall at home or during leisure time. From march to december 2020, was observed a significant decrease of falls episodes compared with the previous four years.