EPIDEMIOLOGICAL PROFILE OF PATIENTS DIAGNOSED WITH MENINGITIS IN THE WESTERN MACROREGION OF PARANÁ, BETWEEN THE YEARS 2016 AND 2023

Abstract

Meningitis is an inflammatory process of the meninges. This disease can be caused by multiple infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and non-infectious agents. The clinical picture of meningitis is severe, characterized by fever, intense headache, neck stiffness, nausea, vomiting, prostration, and mental confusion, along with signs of meningeal irritation such as Kernig's sign and Brudzinski's sign, accompanied by changes in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Although viral meningitis is the most common, bacterial meningitis has greater epidemiological relevance due to its high potential to cause outbreaks, worse clinical outcomes, and high morbidity and mortality rates, especially in children from regions with low socioeconomic levels. Thus, studying the epidemiological profile of this disease is of utmost importance. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the etiological agents and risk groups for meningitis development in the Western Macroregion of Paraná between 2016 and 2023. For this, data were collected from the DATASUS platform and analyzed statistically. The P-value was considered significant when < 0.05. The results show that, although men are more affected by meningitis, there was no significant difference from women in Paraná. Furthermore, the results emphasize that the main risk group is children under 1 year old, followed by the age groups of 20 to 39 and 40 to 59 years. Although children are the main risk group, they are the ones with the best outcomes, being the group with the highest number of discharges. Regarding the main types of meningitis, viral and bacterial meningitis stand out, with viral meningitis having a better outcome compared to bacterial meningitis. The results obtained in this study can contribute to the development of public policies aimed at creating protocols and organizing hospital care, as well as the development of strategies to increase vaccination adherence and coverage, especially for high-risk groups.