Vigilância epidemiológica e estratégias de controle da esporotricose animal no município de Juarez Távora

Abstract

Sporotrichosis is a zoonotic mycosis of increasing relevance in human and animal health, caused by fungi of the Sporothrix schenckii complex, especially S. brasiliensis, the predominant species in Brazil. Fungi of the genus Sporothrix are dimorphic, with a high potential for maintenance and proliferation in soil rich in decomposing organic matter, as well as infecting mammalian hosts. In this context, domestic cats constitute the main hosts and disseminators, especially of S. brasiliensis, playing a central role in maintaining the transmission chain in urban areas. With the first record of suspected infection by this fungus in the municipality of Juarez Távora – PB, it became necessary to obtain information on the epidemiological aspects of sporotrichosis. Thus, this study aimed to describe the epidemiological surveillance actions and the response to feline sporotrichosis in the municipality of Juarez Távora-PB, from August 2023 to March 2025. This is a descriptive observational study, both qualitative and quantitative, based on the indirect analysis of secondary data from Environmental Health Surveillance, notification forms, clinical care records, and official systems (REDCAP, SIGEVS, GAL, and SINAN) related to the animal sporotrichosis outbreak in the municipality of Juarez Távora. With the first case, 380 veterinary consultations were evaluated, of which 59 animals were diagnosed with sporotrichosis, being 58 (98.3%) cats and one (1.7%) dog. The index case occurred in an animal from the rural area; however, 83% of the cases were recorded in the urban area. 76.2% of the affected animals were male and 23.8% were female, with a higher frequency in semi-domesticated animals (79.6% of the cases). In the actions to combat the outbreak, the Municipal Health Service set up a multidisciplinary task force with professionals from various areas of human and animal health, providing training for health professionals, health education for the population, active case search, and treatment of affected animals. Such measures reduced the increase in cases and enabled a high clinical cure rate (69.5%); however, 15.3% of the animals died from the disease, and 6.8% died from other causes or there was no information on the progression of the case. It is concluded that the integrated action of the veterinarian with other health teams is essential in combating sporotrichosis, and that public policies aimed at the ethical population management of felines and ensuring access to treatment are fundamental strategies for reducing the spread of the disease.