Epidemiology and geo-referencing of the dengue fever in a hospital of second level in Colombia, 2010–2014

• Main Authors: Laura M. Hernández, Diego F. Durán, David A. Buitrago, Carlos A. Garnica, Luisa F. Gómez, Diego M. Bados, Marilyn P. Bernal, Lisa M. Páez
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2018-07-01
• Series: Journal of Infection and Public Health
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1876034117302939

Background: Dengue fever is a priority problem for public health in Colombia. The Department of Tolima and the municipality of El Espinal bring a considerable proportion of the cases to national statistics, becoming a representative area for studying the behavior of this pathology. Objective: Determine the epidemiological behavior and the geographic distribution of dengue fever cases treated in the San Rafael Hospital in the municipality of the El Espinal, from 2010 to 2014. Materials and methods: The following is a retrospective cross-sectional case report study of the population with dengue fever treated in San Rafael Hospital. We analyzed data from the mandatory clinical reports of the SIVIGILA (National public health surveillance system, in Spanish) using Excel, EpiInfo and EpiMap were analyzed. The epidemiological analysis encompassed morbidity, mortality, fatality, endemicity and cartograms of georeferencing, among others. Results: The totality of cases was 3264, with an incidence of 5.84 per 1000 inhabitants, mortality of 0.12 cases per 10,000 inhabitants, and lethality of 0.11 per 100 diagnosed cases. 71.6% of the patients were between 1 and 24 years, 53.8% were male and 46.2% female. The endemic behaviour was bimodal, Max in epidemiological periods 3–4 and 12–13. The distribution geographic of cases spanned the whole of the municipality and is related apparently with the population density in an area defined. Conclusions: The results found are above local, national and international parameters on incidence, mortality, and case-fatality. Through the analysis of endemic behavior and geographic distribution, times and specific areas are provided to optimize public health measures. Keywords: Dengue fever, Endemic diseases, Epidemiology, Maps