Sociodemographic and Clinical Factors for Microcephaly Secondary to Teratogenic Infections in Brazil: An Ecological Study
Arlison Pereira Ferreira,
Davi Silva Santana,
Eric Renato Lima Figueiredo,
Marcelo Coelho Simões,
Dionei Freitas de Morais,
Victória Brioso Tavares,
Juliana Gonçalves de Sousa,
Marcos Jessé Abrahão Silva,
Fabiana de Campos Gomes,
João Simão de Melo Neto
Affiliations
Arlison Pereira Ferreira
Unidade de Pesquisa Clínica e Experimental do Sistema Urogenital (UPCEURG), Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém 66075-110, PA, Brazil
Davi Silva Santana
Unidade de Pesquisa Clínica e Experimental do Sistema Urogenital (UPCEURG), Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém 66075-110, PA, Brazil
Eric Renato Lima Figueiredo
Unidade de Pesquisa Clínica e Experimental do Sistema Urogenital (UPCEURG), Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém 66075-110, PA, Brazil
Marcelo Coelho Simões
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais, Universidade do Estado do Pará (UEPA), Belém 66095-100, PA, Brazil
Dionei Freitas de Morais
Faculdade de Medicina de São José do Rio Preto (FAMERP), São José do Rio Preto 15090-000, SP, Brazil
Victória Brioso Tavares
Unidade de Pesquisa Clínica e Experimental do Sistema Urogenital (UPCEURG), Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém 66075-110, PA, Brazil
Juliana Gonçalves de Sousa
Unidade de Pesquisa Clínica e Experimental do Sistema Urogenital (UPCEURG), Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém 66075-110, PA, Brazil
Marcos Jessé Abrahão Silva
Instituto Evandro Chagas (IEC), Ananindeua 67030-000, PA, Brazil
Fabiana de Campos Gomes
Faculdade de Medicina Ceres (FACERES), São José do Rio Preto 15090-305, SP, Brazil
João Simão de Melo Neto
Unidade de Pesquisa Clínica e Experimental do Sistema Urogenital (UPCEURG), Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém 66075-110, PA, Brazil
Microcephaly is a neurological condition characterized by anomalies in the growth of the cranial circumference. This study aims to examine the association between sociodemographic and clinical variables and the occurrence of secondary microcephaly in newborns in Brazil. It also aims to investigate the association between this congenital anomaly and teratogenic infections. This research adopts an observational approach with an ecological, descriptive, and analytical design. The sample includes infants aged ≤28 days and registered in the country’s Live Births Information System from January 2015 to December 2021. Newborns were categorized into G1, consisting of newborns with one of the three infections (Zika, toxoplasmosis, or syphilis), and G2, consisting of newborns with two of the three infections. A total of 1513 samples were analyzed and divided into two groups: one infection (syphilis n = 423; toxoplasmosis n = 295; or Zika n = 739) and two infections (n = 56). The northeastern region of Brazil has the highest prevalence of microcephaly. Regarding the population profile, the Zika virus infection is more common among white mothers, while the syphilis infection is more common among black mothers. Among newborns with microcephaly, boys have a lower prevalence of toxoplasmosis infection, while girls have a lower prevalence of Zika virus infection. This study provides pertinent information on each infection and contributes to the epidemiologic understanding of the association between teratogenic infections and microcephaly.
