Leprosy spread in urban area: part I: epidemiological characteristics of an endemic urban area for leprosy: the county of São Gonçalo, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil

Abstract

Among the needs of deepening the epidemiological inquiry studies of leprosy diffusion in urban area, the evaluation of the Local Information System stands out as base instrument to carry out an epidemiological and operational analysis. The information system was utilized also as base to the populational planning studies. In the present paper, the achievement of the recorded cases mapping in three sanitary units in respective copyhold sectors, as well as the analysis of the specific epidemiological and operational indicators, permited the characterization of the São Gonçalo county as urban endemic area for leprosy, the delimitation of the foci and the inquiry planning. Starting with the specific indicators, according to age, sex, clinical form in the case register date, it was verified a higher detection rate in women than in men, as well as an increase of the tendency of the tuberculoid forms. In the epidemiological inquiry conducted during 85 days, 926 dwellings were visited with interview, physical examination, anthropometric measurings and soluble antigen (SA) application. Such inquiry was conducted by a staff of health professionals and specially trainned and standardized community members. The produced results confirmed that in the copyhold sectors without registered cases, no case, was found and that the domiciliary visits during the Sunday do not presented a superior productivity to the allover days of the week. The whole of the findings lead oneself to conclude that the Local Information System is a valuable instrument for the description of the endemic characteristics in this county and file a construction adequate to the planning of populational studies.