Temporal trends in morbidity and mortality for respiratory diseases in São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract

Respiratory diseases are important causes of morbi-mortality in all agegroups, with considerable economic and social impacts. Several studies have been poiting out an increase in
hospitalizations and deaths due to respiratory diseases. However, few studies have analysed such recent trends in Brazil. In the present study we analyzed hospitalizations occuring from 1995 to 2000 and mortality from 1991 to 2000 through descriptive tables and graphs, correlation analysis and trend tests. We observed a decrease in the rate of hospitalizations for respiratory diseases between 1995-1997 and an increase between 1997-2000 for all agegroups. Increasing trends were also observed for mortality between 1991-2000. Specific patterns for different causes of respiratory diseases, different agegroups and sexes were observed. We concluded that, in the period studied, acute respiratory diseases such as pneumonia had a greater contribution to the respiratory morbi-mortality but with a decreasing trend. On
the other hand, chronic respiratory diseases have presented increasing trends in the period. These results point out to a changing pattern in the respiratory diseases morbi-mortality with direct consequences for public health policy making.