Prevalência de sífilis no município de Ponte Nova - MG

Abstract

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum and remains a significant public health problem, despite its prevention and treatment having been known for decades. The objective of this study was to analyze the epidemiological distribution of acquired, gestational, and congenital syphilis cases reported in the municipality of Ponte Nova (PN) and compare them with data from Minas Gerais (MG) and the country. This is an observational, retrospective study based on information obteined from the Notifiable Diseases Information System considering the period from January 2010 to December 2024 and aspects such as age, race, sex, education, diagnostic criteria, disease progression, clinical classification of infected pregnant women, and prenatal care. A total of 1,538,521 cases of acquired syphilis were reported in Brazil (BR), with 136,788 in MG and 212 in PN, predominantly affecting young people of mixed race who had completed high school. In PN, males and females were equally affected, however, in MG and in the country as a whole, males were more affected. Laboratory criteria were the most commonly used for diagnosis, and most cases progressed to cure in the three spheres evaluated. Most pregnant women were diagnosed with primary syphilis in PN and MG, and latent syphilis in BR. Congenital cases were predominantly diagnosed by the sixth day of life, and most mothers received prenatal care, at which time they received the diagnosis. Investing in prevention, sex education, and clinical follow-up is essential to reduce the transmission and complications of syphilis, contributing to its control.