ArboAlvo: stratification method for territorial receptivity to urban arboviruses.

Objective: To present the urban arboviruses (dengue, zika and chikungunya) stratification methodology by the territorial receptivity Index, an instrument for the surveillance and control of these diseases, which considers the heterogeneity of an intra-municipal territory.

Methods: Ecological study that uses as unit of analysis the areas covered by health centers in Belo Horizonte. For the development of a territorial receptivity index, indicators of socio-environmental determination of urban arboviruses were selected in order to integrate the analysis of main components.

[ARBOALVO: territorial stratification for definition of areas for prompt response by surveillance and timely control of urban arbovirus infections].

The study aimed to present the methodological proposal entitled "Prompt Response", modelled in the cities of Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais State) and Natal (Rio Grande do Norte State), Brazil. The proposal aims to identify and demarcate priority areas for timely targeting of surveillance activities, aiming to reduce the intensity and velocity in the spread of epidemics in endemic urban areas. The methodology uses three variables that represent the necessary causes for the production and reproduction of dengue: notified cases (virus), Aedes eggs (vector), and population (host).

Visceral leishmaniasis control actions: epidemiological indicators for its effectiveness evaluation in a Brazilian urban area.

This research applies indicators concerning control of the visceral leishmaniasis canine reservoir in the city of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Data were obtained from the Zoonoses Control Information System (SCZOO) and the Brazilian Information System on Diseases of Notification (SINAN) database. First we analyzed (i) existing associations between canine epidemiological indicators, where the dependent variable was the canine seroprevalence A (2007 to 2013), and the independent variables were, as follows: canine seroprevalence B (2006 to 2012); percentage of positive dogs by ELISA test reagents that were not euthanized; the relationship between the human and canine population; canine population testing coverage by census surveys; and the years of study (2006 to 2013); (ii) then, we examined the association between human visceral leishmaniasis (HVL) cases between 2007 to 2013 and the mentioned variables related to dogs and years.

Imported malaria in Rio de Janeiro state between 2007 and 2015: an epidemiologic approach.

Imported malaria is a malaria infection diagnosed outside the area where it was acquired and is induced by human migration and mobility. This retrospective study was performed based on secondary data from 2007 to 2015. In total, 736 cases of imported malaria (79.

Entomo-virological surveillance strategy for dengue, Zika and chikungunya arboviruses in field-caught Aedes mosquitoes in an endemic urban area of the Northeast of Brazil.

Aedes spp. are considered the main vectors of dengue (DENV), Zika (ZIKV) and chikungunya (CHIKV) viruses in the world. Arbovirus detection in Aedes mosquitoes can alert authorities to possible outbreaks, reducing the impact of these diseases.

Murder and actual bodily harm in Itaborai, Brazil: analysis at different scales.

An ecological study aimed at analyzing homicide rates and actual bodily harm was conducted in Itaboraí, in the years 2010 to 2011. The entire municipality was used in the study covering critical and non-critical areas. The data came from the Information System for the Public Security Institute in Rio de Janeiro state.

Epidemiological surveillance of tegumentary leishmaniasis: local territorial analysis.

Objective: To propose a new operational unit in the locality scale capable of subsidizing the construction of an information system to control the transmission of tegumentary leishmaniasis at this scale, in a region of high endemicity of the Atlantic Forest.

Methods: We examined the adequacy of data and instruments in an area of high endemicity in the Atlantic Forest located in the South of the State of Rio de Janeiro from 1990 to 2012. The study proposed an operational unit called Local Surveillance Unit to make all used databases compatible by adjusting census sectors.

Vulnerability to the transmission of human visceral leishmaniasis in a Brazilian urban area.

Objective: To analyze the determinants for the occurrence of human visceral leishmaniasis linked to the conditions of vulnerability.

Methods: This is an ecological study, whose spatial analysis unit was the Territorial Analysis Unit in Araguaína, State of Tocantins, Brazil, from 2007 to 2012. We have carried out an analysis of the sociodemographic and urban infrastructure situation of the municipality.

Tuberculosis as a marker of inequities in the context of socio-spatial transformation.

Objective: This study aims to analyze the association between the incidence of tuberculosis and different socioeconomic indicators in a territory of intense transformation of the urban space.

Methods: This is an ecological study, whose analysis units were the neighborhoods of the city of Itaboraí, state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The data have been analyzed by generalized linear models.

The role of spatial mobility in malaria transmission in the Brazilian Amazon: The case of Porto Velho municipality, Rondônia, Brazil (2010-2012).

Background: This study aims to describe the role of mobility in malaria transmission by discussing recent changes in population movements in the Brazilian Amazon and developing a flow map of disease transmission in this region.

Methodology/principal Findings: This study presents a descriptive analysis using an ecological approach on regional and local scales. The study location was the municipality of Porto Velho, which is the capital of Rondônia state, Brazil.

Abundance of Lutzomyia longipalpis in urban households as risk factor of transmission of visceral leishmaniasis.

Urban occurrence of human and canine visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is linked to households with characteristics conducive to the presence of sand flies. This study proposes an ad hoc classification of households according to the environmental characteristics of receptivity to phlebotominae and an entomological study to validate the proposal. Here we describe the phlebotominae population found in intra- and peridomiciliary environments and analyse the spatiotemporal distribution of the VL vector Lutzomyia longipalpis of households receptive to VL.

Association among house infestation index, dengue incidence, and sociodemographic indicators: surveillance using geographic information system.

Background: We identified dengue transmission areas by using the Geographic Information Systems located at local surveillance units of the Itaboraí municipality in state of Rio de Janeiro. We considered the association among the house infestation index, the disease incidence, and sociodemographic indicators during a prominent dengue outbreak in 2007 and 2008.

Methods: In this ecological study, the Local Surveillance Units (UVLs) of the municipality were used as spatial pattern units.

[Use of local level indicators for the spatial analysis of morbidity due to diarrhea and its relation with lifestyle conditions].

Every child had an average of three episodes of diarrhea per year in developing countries in the twentieth century. The decrease of the number of deaths due to diarrhea in Brazil was more closely related to the use of control techniques than to changes in lifestyle conditions. This article seeks to analyze the spatial distribution of morbidity due to diarrhea among children and its relation with lifestyle conditions.

[Urban sporotrichosis: a neglected epidemic in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil].

In the scientific literature, sporotrichosis has traditionally been associated with agricultural work, since the causative agent is found naturally in the soil. However, cases have been reported recently in an urban area, related to zoonotic transmission. The current study aimed to contribute to knowledge on sporotrichosis in an urban area through an exploratory analysis of its socio-spatial distribution in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 1997 to 2007, identifying the areas with the heaviest transmission.

[The limits and possibilities of the Schistosomiasis Information System (SISPCE) for surveillance and control activities].

The aim of this study was to analyze the limits and possibilities of the Information System in the Schistosomiasis Control Program (SISPCE) for characterization and surveillance of the disease at the local level. The data were aggregated to calculate epidemiological indicators such as the program's coverage and intensity of mansoni schistosomiasis infection in the endemic municipalities (counties) in Bahia State, Brazil, from 1999 to 2005. The results indicate that few municipalities have the program activities properly in place, with insufficient records in the system and lack of reporting for characterizing the endemic or providing feedback for proper surveillance and control.

[Production of transmission foci for cutaneous leishmaniasis: the case of Pau da Fome, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil].

This study analyzes the characteristics of one of the main foci for cutaneous leishmaniasis transmission in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, examining its territorial configuration and the relations with spatial organization processes. An analytical model was applied to the process of occupation and organization of urban space on a local scale, considering the new functions acquired by the spatial elements expressed by different work relations, land use, and land value. The study employed geoprocessing techniques and classification of images obtained by remote sensing, localization of households, and cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis, associated with qualitative data on the historical process of land occupation and use.

Determination of priority areas for dengue control actions.

Objective: To identify areas at risk of dengue transmission by means of cluster analysis.

Methods: A cluster analysis in which the primary analysis units were the 48 districts of the municipality of Niterói, Southeastern Brazil, was conducted. The districts were grouped into six strata according to sociodemographic conditions, using the k-means cluster analysis method.

[Specific dengue transmission conditions at the local level: a study in Itaipu, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil].

This study analyzes the specific conditions involved in dengue transmission in various areas in Itaipu, a coastal neighborhood in the city of Niterói, Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, with a focus on socio-environmental determinants and conditioning factors. Four areas were selected with similar dengue incidence rates but different urban planning and socioeconomic patterns. The socio-spatial characteristics of each area were obtained through interviews with key informants and systematic observation.

The spatial distribution of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus in a transition zone, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Dengue fever has become the most important vector-borne viral disease in Brazil. Human facilitated transport of desiccation-resistant eggs has led to its two most important vectors, Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus, becoming widespread.

No difference in leprosy treatment outcomes comparing 12- and 24-dose multidrug regimens: a preliminary study.

A comparative study was performed on the initial and final bacillary indexes of 213 multibacillary leprosy patients who received 12 doses (Group 1: 128 patients) or 24 doses (Group 2: 85 patients) of multidrug therapy (MDT/WHO) to measure the effectiveness of the two regimens. All patients were evaluated at treatment baseline, 12 months, and 24 months. The reduction in bacillary levels and mean bacillary indexes at 24 months was similar in the two groups.

[Preliminary analysis of the Information System in the Brazilian Schistosomiasis Control Program, 1999-2003].

This study provides a preliminary analysis of the Information System in the Schistosomiasis Control Program (SISPCE) in the States of Bahia, Sergipe, Alagoas, and Pernambuco, Brazil, from 1999 to 2003. The data analysis suggests a sharp decline in data entry in the system during the transition period involving health services decentralization, followed by a gradual increase. Major under-recording was observed in Pernambuco.

[Spatial distribution of leptospirosis in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1996-1999].

Leptospirosis, one of the most widely disseminated zoonoses in the world, is endemic in Brazil and is characterized by outbreaks during seasons with the greatest rainfall. In 1996 the city of Rio de Janeiro experienced one of the largest urban epidemics in the country, shortly after heavy rainstorms in the month of February, with 1,732 reported cases and 51 deaths. The objective of this work was to describe the spatial distribution of leptospirosis in the city of Rio de Janeiro during the period 1996-1999.

A comparative study between 12 and 24-dose therapeutic regimens for multibacillary leprosy patients.

A comparative study was made of the initial and final bacterial indices (BIs) of 213 MB leprosy patients who had been administered 12-dose (Group 1/128 patients) and 24-dose (Group 2/85 patients) World Health Organization multi-drug therapy to measure the effectiveness of both treatment regimens. All patients were evaluated at the beginning of treatment, at 12 months, and again after 24 months had elapsed. Decline in BI values and average BIs at 24 months were found to be similar for both groups.

Remote sensing as a tool to survey endemic diseases in Brazil.

The objective of this study, based on a systematic literature review, is to present the characteristics and potentialities of remote sensing as a useful environmental surveillance tool for applied research in the control of endemics in Brazil. Onboard satellite sensors allow for monitoring the territory, furnishing spatial and temporal information on various scales and regions in the electromagnetic spectrum. Based on the literature review on the application of this technology to the study of endemics and the identification of the potential of new sensors with better spectral, spatial, and temporal resolutions, this study highlights perspectives for the use of remote sensing in the study of important endemics for Brazil.

[Spatial distribution of tegumentary leishmaniasis in the city of Rio de Janeiro].

The authors analyze the historical and spatial determinants of the implantation, persistence, and spread of cutaneous leishmaniasis in the municipality of Rio de Janeiro and the links between the disease and the organization of urban space and occupation processes on the periphery of the city beginning in the early 20th century through the 1980s. A pattern of outbreaks that was restricted and spatially discontinuous but sequenced was observed and seen to be linked to a dynamic process of urban real estate appreciation, comprising a large endemic area for cutaneous leishmaniasis. An analysis of the occupation and organization of urban space in the so-called Western Zone of Rio de Janeiro was conducted, considering new functions of spatial elements expressed through changing work relations, land use, and land value.