Analysis of hospitalizations and mortality from to febrile, infectious, and parasitic diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil

Abstract

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, undifferentiated febrile illnesses are being less detected and / or confused in clinical diagnoses, which implies in late treatments and a worse prognosis. Objective: Evaluate hospitalizations and the mortality rate of undifferentiated febrile illnesses that occurred simultaneously with COVID-19 in Brazil. Method: A descriptive and quantitative analysis of the number of hospitalizations, mortality rates, expenses, and average length of hospitalizations for visceral leishmaniasis, leptospirosis, malaria and dengue were performed. The information was obtained from the Sistema de Informações Hospitalares do Sistema Único de Saúde (SIH / SUS), during the first eight months of 2020 and compared with average values from the same period from the years 2017 to 2019. Results: The number of hospitalizations for visceral leishmaniasis, leptospirosis and malaria in 2020 showed a decrease of 32.87%, 43.59%, 29.31%, respectively, while dengue showed an increase of 29.51% compared to the averages from 2017 to 2019. The mortality rate (2020) increased by 32.64%, 38.98%, 82.55% and 14.26% for the respective illnesses. Expenses and average length of stay fluctuated proportionally according to hospitalizations, with no important variations detected. Discussion: The possibility of underreporting, misunderstanding and late diagnoses was discussed, with a consequent increase in the mortality rate in undifferentiated febrile illnesses. It is necessary for the health system to pay attention and not to neglect the undifferentiated febrile illnesses already endemic to the country because of the pandemic moment.