Cadernos de saúde pública
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Cadernos de saúde pública · Jan 2020
Comparative StudyCOVID-19 and hospitalizations for SARI in Brazil: a comparison up to the 12th epidemiological week of 2020.
Surveillance of the severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) in Brazil aims to characterize the circulation of the Influenza A and B viruses in hospitalized cases and deaths, having been expanded in 2012 to include other respiratory viruses. COVID-19 was detected in Brazil for the time in the 9th epidemiological week of 2020, and the test for the SARS-CoV-2 virus was included in the surveillance protocol starting in the 12th epidemiological week. This study's objective was to investigate the pattern of hospitalizations for SARI in Brazil since the entry of SARS-CoV-2, comparing the temporal and age profiles and laboratory results to the years 2010 through 2019. ⋯ There was a considerable increase in negative laboratory tests, suggesting circulation of a different virus from those already present in the panel. We concluded that the increase in hospitalizations for SARI, the lack of specific information on the etiological agent, and the predominance of cases among the elderly during the same period in which there was an increase in the number of new cases of COVID-19 are all consistent with the hypothesis that severe cases of COVID-19 are already being detected by SARI surveillance, placing an overload on the health system. The inclusion of testing for SARS-CoV-2 in the SARI surveillance protocol and the test's effective nationwide deployment are extremely important for monitoring the evolution of severe COVID-19 cases in Brazil.
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Cadernos de saúde pública · Jan 2020
Comparative StudyDescription and comparison of demographic characteristics and comorbidities in SARI from COVID-19, SARI from influenza, and the Brazilian general population.
The study aims to describe patients hospitalized for severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) due to COVID-19 (SARI-COVID) in Brazil according to demographic characteristics and comorbidities up to the 21st Epidemiological Week of 2020. The study aimed to compare these characteristics with those of patients hospitalized for SARI due to influenza in 2019/2020 (SARI-FLU) and with the Brazilian general population. ⋯ Compared to the general population, Brazilians hospitalized for SARI-FLU showed higher prevalence rates of ages 0 to 4 years or over 60 years, white race/color, comorbidities (diabetes, chronic kidney disease, asthma, and other chronic lung diseases), and pregnant/postpartum women. The data suggest that these groups are evolving to more serious forms of the disease, so that longitudinal studies are extremely relevant for investigating this hypothesis and supporting appropriate public health policies.
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Cadernos de saúde pública · Jan 2020
Racial inequalities and death on the horizon: COVID-19 and structural racism.
COVID-19 incidence and mortality in countries with heavy social inequalities differ in population terms. In countries like Brazil with colonial histories and traditions, the social markers of differences are heavily anchored in social and racial demarcation, and the political and social dynamics and processes based on structural racism act on this demarcation. ⋯ The authors discuss government responses and COVID-19 indicators according to race/color, demonstrating the maintenance of historical storylines that continue to threaten black lives. The article also discusses the importance of local resistance movements, organized in the favelas, precarious urban spaces underserved by the State and occupied by black Brazilians.