Estudo epidemiológico dos casos de acidentes por escorpião no Estado do Ceará, de 2007 a 2013.

Abstract

This communication is a retrospective study of the epidemiology of scorpion sting cases recorded from 2007 to 2013 in the State of Ceará, northeastern Brazil. Data was collected from the Injury Notification Information System database of the Health Department of Ceará. A total of 11,134 cases were studied. Cases were distributed over all months of the period studied and occurred mainly in urban areas. Victims were predominantly 20–29 year-old women. Most victims were bitten on the hand and received medical assistance within 1–3 h after being bitten. Cases were mostly classified as mild and progressed to cure. Scorpion envenomation in Ceará is an environmental public health problem that needs to be monitored and controlled throughout the year. Further training for health professionals seems to be necessary to improve their skills in recording epidemiological information. Future studies on the species and community structure of those scorpions existing in the northeast region are necessary to better understand the species involved in the scorpion envenomation.