Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2014;36(12):535-540
DOI 10.1590/So100-720320140005086
To analyze the spatial distribution of the prevalence of anti-toxoplasma gondii antibodies in pregnant women from a Brazilian Northeast city, and to correlate such prevalence with average maternal age and place of residence.
A descriptive, analytical and ecological study was conducted from January 1st to December 31st 2012. Data were obtained retrospectively from the Medical Specialties Center database and processed with the Epi info statistical package (Epi 7, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, USA) and with Microsoft Excel 2010. The X2 test was applied to assess the association between the prevalence of antibodies to toxoplasma gondii and the average age. Spatial analysis of infection prevalence was performed using the TerraView software, version 4.2.2, with Kerneldensity estimation, which estimates the quantity of events through maps in order to identify areas with the highest concentration of cases in the city.
The seroprevalence of IgG was 68.5% (95%CI 67.2-69.8) and the prevalence of IgM was 0.36% (95%CI 0.23-0.6). A higher IgG prevalence was associated with increased age in the oldest neighborhoods of the state capital, whereas a higher IgG prevalence among younger women was detected in suburban neighborhoods. The spatial concentration of IgM antibodies was higher in suburban neighborhoods, with no significant correlation between seroprevalence and age.
Geoprocessing allowed the identification of areas with the highest prevalence, as well as the most susceptible average age and it was also useful as an instrument for the evaluation and implementation of appropriate preventive measures for this municipality and for other regions of Brazil.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2011;33(8):188-195
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032011000800004
PURPOSE: To describe the epidemiological profile and nutritional status of pregnant women infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and its effect on the nutritional status of these women during pregnancy. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 121 pregnant women with HIV infection, single fetus pregnancies, who received prenatal care and delivered at a referral unit for HIV-infected pregnant women during the period from 1997 to 2007. Outcomes of the study were the initial and final nutritional status as measured by body mass index, weight gain, anemia (hemoglobin <11 g/dL) and low birth weight. Bivariate analysis investigated the association of these outcomes with socio-demographic, clinical-care and dietary characteristics. We estimated the relative risks (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: At the beginning of pregnancy, 11.0% of the women were underweight, and in late pregnancy, the prevalence was 29.3%. Low educational level, urinary infection and worm infestation were associated with low gestational weight in late pregnancy. The percentage of insufficient weight gain was 47.5%, with well-nourished pregnant women (RR=3.3 95%CI 1.3-8.1) and women with no companion (RR=1.5 95%CI 1.1-2.2) having a higher risk for this outcome. The prevalences of overweight at the beginning and at the end of pregnancy were 26.8 and 29.4, respectively. There was a significant prevalence of anemia (61.0%). CONCLUSIONS: The high percentage of negative nutritional outcomes identified at this referral service with multidisciplinary care for pregnant women living with HIV reveals the need to establish more effective strategies to deal with the complex context of HIV.