[Description of duplicate records held on the Notifiable Diseases Information System, Brazil, 2008-2009]. / Descrição dos registros repetidos no Sistema de Informação de Agravos de Notificação, Brasil, 2008-2009.

OBJECTIVE: to describe the proportion of duplicate records held on the Brazilian Notifiable Diseases Information System, 2008-2009. METHODS: identification of duplicate records of dengue, leprosy, visceral leishmaniasis and cutaneous leishmaniasis, meningitis and tuberculosis was conducted using Reclink III(r); the proportion of duplicate records was calculated by geographical region, state and municipal population size categories. RESULTS: visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and meningitis had higher proportions of duplicate notification (5.3% and 3.6%, respectively) whilst leprosy had the lowest (0.7%); the states with highest repetitions were Rio Grande do Norte (VL 6.8% and leprosy 5.1%), Rio de Janeiro (tuberculosis 2.5% and meningitis 4.9%) and Goiás (dengue 2.0% and meningitis 7.2%). CONCLUSION: the Northeast region had the highest proportion of duplicate records for four of the six diseases analyzed; with the exception of dengue, percentage repetition was lower in municipalities with larger population size.

Reportable neurologic diseases in refugee camps in 19 countries.

BACKGROUND: Approximately one-third of refugees worldwide live in refugee camps. Selected neurologic diseases are actively reported in some refugee camps. METHODS: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees monitors health visits in refugee camps with the assistance of more than 25 partner organizations using standardized case definitions. Neurologic diseases were selected and searched for the years 2008 to 2011. The number of health care visits for a neurologic disease was calculated and divided by the aggregated number of reporting months available for each refugee camp ("visits per camp-month"). RESULTS: Five neurologic diseases were reported from 127 refugee camps in 19 countries. Visits for chronic, noncommunicable diseases including epilepsy (53,941 visits in 1,426 camp-months, 48% female) and cerebrovascular disease (4,028 visits in 1,333 camp-months, 51% female) far exceeded those for neurologic infectious diseases (acute flaccid paralysis/poliomyelitis, 78 visits in 3,816 camp-months, 42% female; leprosy, 74 visits in 3,816 camp-months, 66% female; meningitis, 477 visits in 3,816 camp-months, 51% female). In 2011, these diseases accounted for 31,349 visits globally with 91% of visits for epilepsy. CONCLUSIONS: Targeted programs addressing epilepsy and stroke among refugees in camps should become a priority and indicate that other chronic neurologic diseases that may be under- or misdiagnosed may also be common in refugee camps. Given that significant under-reporting is likely, our findings demonstrate the pressing need for coordinated preventive and interventional measures for epilepsy and stroke in refugee camps.

Perfil epidemiológico no município de Olinda, 1990 / Epidemiologic pattern in the city of Olinda, 1990

A pesquisa foi realizada com objetivo de avaliar o perfil epidemiológico das doenças transmissíveis nas 5 áreas programáticas do município de Olinda. Os dados foram coletados dos serviços de saúde municipais, estaduais e conveniados que enviavam o relatório semanal de notificaçao para o nível regional, cujo registro era feito pelos médicos clínicos, pediatras e ginecologistas. Destaca-se a hanseníase como a doença mais notificada na área II nao havendo referência dos casos para os serviços especializados, tendo sido caracterizada como de baixa endemicidade (0,15/1000 hab.). A hepatite foi a patologia mais notificada em todas as áreas do município, atingindo mais o grupo de 5 a 14 anos. A tuberculose mostrou-se mais ou menos semelhante nas áreas programáticas, sendo mais atingido o grupo de 15 a 49 anos, com baixo coeficiente de incidência. A coqueluche foi mais registrada nas áreas III e V e o grupo de maior risco os menores de 1 ano. A meningite atingiu mais os menores de 1 ano. No sarampo o grupo mais atingido foi de 1 a 4 anos com maior risco para os menores de 1 ano. A leptospirose foi mais frequente entre 5 a 14 anos. Quanto à sífilis congênita os casos foram notificados na fase precoce. A difteria ocorreu nas crianças de 1 a 4 e 5 a 14 anos com igual frequencia. Dos 279 casos notificados apenas 28 por cento foram confirmados

[Pathology in the Republic of Vanuatu]. / La pathologie en République du Vanuatu.

The archipelago of Vanuatu is located in the South-West Pacific at 2,000 km, East of Australia. The so-called "current" pathology is similar to the one met in Europe. Because of its geographical location, a tropical pathology is to be found with a prevalence of Malaria, intestinal nematodoses and filariases ( Wuchereria bancrofti). Leprosy , dengue, ciguatera, eosinophilic meningitis as well as Tokeleau bring its originality to this pathology.

[Incidence of bacterial diseases (author's transl)]. / Incidence des affections bactériennes.

Bacterial diseases world incidence figure is not easily reckoned on account of the lack of reliability from original notifications. However the present situation is characterized by: --the regression of diseases under International Health Regulations; --the great diffusion of sexually transmitted diseases; --the keeping-up of the activity of digestive or respiratory transmitted disease, including tuberculosis.