This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Infants most affected by visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
The rate of visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil increased by more than 50% between 1990 and 2016, and infants were the most heavily affected by the disease, according to research published in PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases.
“Identifying diseases that pose the greatest threat to health and well-being helps policymakers planning interventions, monitoring processes and evaluating the impact and effectiveness of control measures,” Juliana Maria Trindade Bezerra, PhD, a researcher in virology at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil, and colleagues wrote. “The burden of a disease reflects the human and economic costs caused by the disease and, better than morbidity and mortality indicators, reflects the relative importance of the disease and disability for the entire population.”
Bezerra and colleagues added that although previous studies have quantified the burden of leishmaniasis in Brazil, some areas are underrepresented and no subnational analyses have been conducted.
For this study, the researchers examined the incidence, years of life lost (YLL), years lived with disability (YLD) and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) of visceral leishmaniasis as well as cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis in the country between 1990 and 2016.
During the study period, the researchers observed a 48.5% drop in the rate of leishmaniasis in Brazil — from 71 cases per 100,000 inhabitants (95% uncertainty interval [UI]; 24.3-150.7) in 1990 to 36.5 cases per 100,000 inhabitants (95% UI; 24.7-50.9) in 2016. However, an 83.6% age-standardized increase in DALYs occurred in the same 26-year period (12.2 years in 1990 vs. 22.4 years in 2016).
The rate of visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil increased by 52.9%, with a 108% increase in YLL. While the rate of visceral leishmaniasis increased, both the incidence and YLL from cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis decreased significantly — by 51% and 31.8%, respectively.
The researchers observed an increasing number of YLL and DALYs for both male and female inhabitants with visceral leishmaniasis, but slightly higher rates were observed among males.
According to Bezerra and colleagues, the most significant increase in YLL related to visceral leishmaniasis was observed in children aged younger than 1 year (131.2%).
Males were most affected by cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis, with the highest rates of YLD and DALYs. Additionally, the rate of YLD increased as inhabitants aged.
The researchers wrote that the burden of visceral leishmaniasis increased in some states within the northeast and southeast regions of Brazil, and the burden of cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis decreased in some northern states.
The rate of DALYs in Brazil is the second highest among the countries in South America, just behind Paraguay (28.5 per 100,000 inhabitants).
“In the year 2016 alone, we detected approximately 420 YLL/100,000 inhabitants in children under 1 year of age, regardless of gender. This pattern of YLL in children confirms the premature mortality due to [visceral leishmaniasis] previously observed in Brazil.” – by Katherine Bortz
Disclosures: The authors report no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts