Epidemiology of accidents involving venomous animals in the State of Ceará, Brazil (2007-2019)

Abstract

Introduction: Envenomation remains a neglected public health problem in most tropical countries. Epidemiological studies on accidents caused by venomous animals are scarce in the Northeast region of Brazil, mainly in the state of Ceará. The present study aimed to describe the epidemiological features of envenomation cases involving venomous animals in the State of Ceará, Northeastern Brazil, from 2007 to 2019. Methods: The online Notifiable Diseases Information System was consulted for data on all envenomation cases involving venomous terrestrial animals. Data collected were evaluated for the number of accidents/year, number of accidents/zoological group, antivenom therapy, zone of occurrence, sex, age-group distribution, and deaths. Results: A total of 54,980 cases were recorded, with the highest incidence being that of scorpion stings (67.2%), predominantly in women (52.4%; odds ratio=3.6; 95% confidence interval=3.5-3.8), equally affecting people aged 10-19 years and 40-59 years (21.4%), in the urban areas (odds ratio=10.3; 95% confidence interval=9.9-10.8), especially in the rainy months. Snakebites (16.7%) had an incidence of 8.1/100,000 inhabitants, but the highest case-fatality rates were observed in bee stings (1.3%) and spider bites (0.5%). Regarding therapeutic variables, a small percentage of people had access to serotherapy (5.3%). Conclusions: This study highlights the accidents caused by terrestrial venomous animals as a public health problem that must be monitored in Ceará. Thus, our findings suggest that preventive actions against scorpion and bee stings should be intensified during the months of higher incidence to improve public policies for patient care.

Evolution of the occurrence of Tityus serrulatus (LUTZ & MELLO, 1992) in the state of Santa Catarina

“…The majority of the cases were mild (94.6%), with 4.5% of the cases being moderate and 0.9% severe. Other studies have also reported a higher incidence of mild cases in several regions of Brazil, while severe cases varied from 0.4% to 13.5% [10][11][12][13] . Envenoming with T. serrulatus registered in Santa Catarina did not evolve severely, which can be associated with the lower number of cases with children in this state, since other states show a higher prevalence in children aged 0-12 years old [10][11][12][13][14][15][16] and T. serrulatus is involved in most severe cases and fatal outcomes, especially when the victims are children 17 .…”

Aspectos Epidemiológicos e Sociais do Escorpionismo em Município do Recôncavo Baiano, Brasil

“…Diversos estudos têm mostrado maior incidência de escorpionismo em mulheres ocupadas em serviços domésticos 5,18,29,34,36,37 . Entretanto, estudos realizados no Extremo Sul da Bahia 20 , Vitória da Conquista-BA 33 e Jequié-BA 38 demonstraram que a maioria dos casos de escorpionismo ocorreu em homens (70,1%) que exerciam atividade de produção no meio rural, sugerindo que o ambiente pode influenciar diretamente no perfil do acidentado por escorpionismo.…”

Trend in the incidence rates of accidents with venomous animals in children and adolescents in Brazil (2007–2019)

“…This type of accident is frequent and represents a serious public health issue in tropical countries. 1 In Brazil, accidents involving venomous animals are compulsory notification events since 2010, and those caused by snakes, scorpions, spiders, and caterpillars are of priority interest for the epidemiological surveillance system. 2 Overall, these accidents are more serious in children than in adults, 3 considering that the amount of injected venom is independent of the victim's age and the unbound fraction concentration in organs is higher in the pediatric population.…”