Perfil epidemiológico dos casos de sífilis gestacional e congênita no Rio Grande do Norte

Abstract

Objective: To describe the epidemiological profile of gestational and congenital syphilis cases in the state of Rio Grande do Norte. Methodology: This is a descriptive epidemiological study with secondary data analysis. Information on the indicators was obtained from 2010 to 2019 at http://indicadoressifilis.aids.gov.br/ of the Department of Chronic Diseases and Sexually Transmitted Infections of the Ministry of Health. Results: From 2010 to 2019 there was an increase in the number of notified cases of gestational and congenital syphilis in Rio Grande do Norte. There was a high percentage of women who underwent the diagnosis in the third trimester of pregnancy (46.2%) and 87.5% of pregnant women were treated with penicillin, but 74.1% were considered inadequate treatment. Regarding congenital syphilis, 97.5% of cases were diagnosed in the first seven days of life. Prenatal care was performed by 84.2% of the women, and only 50.2% of the patients were diagnosed with syphilis during the prenatal period, with a significant percentage of cases diagnosed in childbirth or during curettage (40.4%), showing a high number of late diagnoses. There is low adherence to treatment by partners of women diagnosed with syphilis, with only 17.3% of partners treated. Conclusion: The data suggest a worrying increase in the incidence of gestational and congenital syphilis in Rio Grande do Norte and show that syphilis remains an important public health problem, despite its low-cost prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.