American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis in an endemic municipality in the North of Minas Gerais State: spatial analysis and socio-environmental factors

• Published in: Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo
• Main Authors: Renata Luiz Ursine, Marília Fonseca Rocha, Joel Fontes de Sousa, Ronaldo Cardoso dos Santos, Marcelo Dias Soares, Maria Suely Fernandes Gusmão, Marcos Esdras Leite, Thallyta Maria Vieira
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade de São Paulo (USP) 2021
• Subjects: Environmental health; One health; Spatial analysis; Cutaneous Leishmaniasis; American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis; Eco-epidemiology; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Infectious and parasitic diseases; RC109-216; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/s1678-9946202163002; https://doaj.org/article/b4d1e68d0b3f4068a536cfd631b96569

ABSTRACT American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis (ATL) is endemic in the municipality of Montes Claros, Minas Gerais State. The use of geotechnology such as spatial statistics and remote sensing has contributed to a better understanding of the eco-epidemiology of diseases, and consequently a better definition of control strategies. This study aimed to analyze the spatial distribution of probable sites of cases of ATL infection (2007-2011) in the municipality of Montes Claros and to identify related socio-environmental factors. Data on ATL cases notification were obtained from the Municipal Health Department of Montes Claros. The annual incidence of ATL in the municipality was calculated and the probable sites of infection were georeferenced. Crude Rate and the Local Empirical Bayesian Rate were calculated with census sectors considered as the unit of analysis. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was calculated from LANDSAT 5 TM images. The spatial association between the crude rate of ATL and the NDVI of the census tracts was evaluated using the Local Bivariate of Moran I. The socio-environmental aspects of household structures were assessed based on a structured questionnaire. The incidence of ATL in the evaluated period ranged from 6.2 to 16.6 cases/100,000 inhabitants. The highest rates of ATL occurrence were found in the census sectors located in the rural area and in the peripheral census sectors in the city. Through the Empirical Bayes Smoothed Rate map, it was found that in the peripheral areas of the city, the rates of ATL occurrence were lower than in the rural area and their values decreased as they approach the city center. Local Bivariate of Moran I showed a positive correlation between NDVI and crude ATL rates, with significant high-high clusters observed in the rural area and in the census sectors in the Western peripheral area of the city that have experienced an urban expansion concomitant to the period investigated. In most homes of people affected by the disease, there were domestic ...