Publications by authors named "Sandra Costa Drummond"
Introduction: This study aimed to evaluate whether a low platelet count is a good surrogate marker of hepatosplenic schistosomiasis (HSS) in a rural area of Brazil. A small district in southeastern Brazil, with a population of 1,543 individuals and a 23% prevalence of schistosomiasis, was selected for this investigation.
Methods: In July 2012, 384 volunteers were subjected to clinical, ultrasonography (US), and laboratory examinations, including stool sample analysis.
Article Synopsis
- The study examined chemokine levels in patients with schistosomal mansoni glomerulonephritis in Southeast Brazil, involving 160 participants divided into five groups based on their health status.
- Chemokines CCL2, CCL3, CCL5, CCL11, and CXCL8 were measured in serum and urine, revealing a similar chemokine profile in schistosomal glomerulopathy patients compared to those with other causes of glomerulopathy, except for serum CCL2 levels.
- High serum CCL2 levels (greater than 634.3 pg/mL) may indicate schistosomal glomerulopathy, suggesting it can help in diagnosing this specific renal disease.
Acute schistosomiasis diagnosis: a new tool for the diagnosis of schistosomiasis in a group of travelers recently infected in a new focus of Schistosoma mansoni.
Rev Soc Bras Med Trop
October 2013
Article Synopsis
- Researchers created a new test called ELISA-SmTeg to quickly diagnose a disease called schistosomiasis mansoni, which can cause serious health problems later on.
- They used this test during an outbreak with a group of 80 travelers who were exposed to infected freshwater in Brazil, finding that 64 of them had the disease.
- The new test was better at detecting the disease than an older method, making it useful for checking infections, especially in places where the disease usually doesn’t happen.
Background: Acute schistosomiasis is a systemic hypersensitivity reaction against the migrating schistosomula and eggs. In this report, we describe an atypical outbreak of the disease with severe cases. Transmission occurred in a nonendemic area of Brazil, which became a new focus of transmission due to the in-migration of infected workers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA geoprocessing approach for studying and controlling schistosomiasis in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.
Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz
July 2010
Geographical information systems (GIS) are tools that have been recently tested for improving our understanding of the spatial distribution of disease. The objective of this paper was to further develop the GIS technology to model and control schistosomiasis using environmental, social, biological and remote-sensing variables. A final regression model (R(2) = 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The Schistosomiasis Control Program (PCE) in Minas Gerais started in 1984 and expanded to address schistosomiasis in 470 municipalities by 1999.
- The program included stool examinations and treatment with praziquantel, leading to significant reductions in infection rates, notably from 14.9% to 5.3% in a specific village post-treatment.
- Findings suggest that ongoing efforts and the establishment of a reference center for severe cases indicate promising progress in controlling the disease.
The effect of the number of stool samples on the observed prevalence and the infection intensity with Schistosoma mansoni among a population in an area of low transmission.
Acta Trop
January 2009
Examination of faecal material by Kato Katz (KK) technique is a widely used approach for the diagnosis of intestinal schistosomiasis, particularly in epidemiological surveys. However, this technique lacks diagnostic sensitivity in individuals with low infection intensity or in low endemic areas. In the total population (TP) of 1265 individuals prevalence and infection intensity were established by examining two KK slides.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis paper discusses schistosomiasis transmission in São José da Serra, a village with a population of 500 in the county of Jaboticatubas, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. The area receives thousands of visitors a year for ecotourism. The study was motivated by a case of acute schistosomiasis involving a couple that spent the 2007 Carnival (Mardi Gras) holiday in the area.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFrom 2002 to 2005, a program of active search for patients with hepatosplenic schistosomiasis and schistosomal myeloradiculopathy has been implemented in the state of Minas Gerais by the local Health Department. The state was divided in 28 regional health centers and the local representatives have been trained to identify and direct patients with hepatosplenic schistosomiasis and neuroschistosomiasis to a reference center in Belo Horizonte, the capital of the state of Minas Gerais. Seventy five patients with hepatosplenic schistosomiasis and 54 with schistosomal myeloradiculopathy have been referred and examined in the reference center in a period of time of 3 years.
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