Geografia e saúde: análise espacial dos casos de hanseníase na 9ª regional de saúde da Paraíba.

Abstract

Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae; attacks nerves and skin, especially peripheral ones such as hands, feet and face, capable of causing irreversible damage. This is a health geography assignment. Here, the spatial analysis of notified leprosy cases in the 9th Regional of Health in Paraíba. This research is an excerpt from a larger work, entitled: Physical disability in leprosy: a case-control study, which fulfilled the Guidelines and Regulatory Norms for Research Involving Human Subjects, according to Resolutions No. 466/2012 and 510/2016 of the National Health Council (CNS), approved by the Research Ethics Committee, under Opinion No. 1,873,644. And still, an ecological, interdisciplinary study, with a quantitative approach, which uses of geoprocessing and statistics. The population and sample is composed of 1,219 cases reported in the period from 2001 to 2014. Data show prevalence with gender male, over 15 years old, color/race (self-reported) brown, less than nine years old formal study and housewife. The prevalence of physical disability is for grade 0. Of all the municipalities that make up the 9th Health Regional, the municipality of Cajazeiras stood out for presenting higher rates of notification and great relevance statistic. Based on the analysis, it was understood that the 9th Health Region of Paraíba presents an endemic character for leprosy, while Cajazeiras presents a hyperendemic character. It was concluded that through spatial analysis, that this work provides instructive data, serves as a subsidy for actions to control/eliminate the leprosy and physical disability, and training of multidisciplinary teams. THE geoprocessing proved to be an indispensable tool in the spatialization of old cases and in the analysis of the most recent cases, allowing the knowledge of the geographic pattern of the disease and the recognition of the points that still make it difficult to understanding of the persistent increase in leprosy case reports.