Epidemiological survey of accidents with venomous animals treated at the Regional Hospital of Bom Jesus, Piauí, Northeast Brazil

Aim: Venomous animals are responsible for 26.8% of all poisonings occurring in people registered in Brazil, reflecting serious economic, medical, and social public health issues in tropical countries. The objective of this work was to characterize the cases notified of accidents involving venomous animals in humans in a Public Regional Hospital located in Piauí state, Northeast Brazil. Methods: We analyzed the notification forms registered at the National Notifiable Diseases Information System (SINAN), provided by the Hospital Regional Manoel de Souza from July 2009 to December 2017. The data were organized in spreadsheets and were exported to SPSS v. 24 for statistical analysis. A linear regression analysis was performed, and variables were considered significant when the estimated regression model presented P ≤ 0.05. Results: From 2009 to 2017, 833 cases of accidents caused by venomous animals treated were reported on SINAN. Accidents caused by scorpions were the most frequent, accounting for 69.7% (n = 269) of cases, followed by snakes at 17.6% (n = 68) and insects at 12.7% (n = 49). The people most affected by venomous animals were men (53.9%; n = 208) between the ages of 20 and 39 (42.5%; n = 164). The most frequent bite site was on the extremities, with the feet being the most affected region at 39.3% (n = 235), followed by the hands at 25.8% (n = 154) and the legs at 8% (n = 48). The study showed that despite the Regional Hospital covering 18 cities, the municipality of Bom Jesus had the highest incidence of accidents caused by venomous animals, mainly scorpions. Therefore, this investigation is a starting point for understanding the spatial distribution of these accidents. The data show that there are still flaws in the SINAN information flow. In the serotherapy variable, for example, 51.1% of cases were not completed. Conclusion: It is necessary to provide guidance and carry out educational work in order to improve official data records, so that they can be incorporated into the care routine.