Abstract

DIAZ GALEANO, Cynthia Liliana. Retrospective Search for Cases of Congenital Rubella in Paraguay. Pediatr. (Asunción) [online]. 2009, vol.36, n.1, pp.21-28. ISSN 1683-9803.

Objectives: To perform a retrospective search for cases of congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) in high-complexity hospitals and institutions or schools caring for differently-abled persons, help improve surveillance of CRS, and establish baseline measurement of the impact of the vaccination campaign against rubella mounted in 2005. Materials and Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study. Universe: all children born in Paraguay between January 1994 and December 2004. The study population included all cases classified as confirmed or probable for CRS who were treated or hospitalized in secondary, tertiary or quaternary level care facilities, or in schools or institutions for rehabilitation of deaf or blind children under age 10, and included 204,069 clinical or epidemiological records (202,087 in hospitals and 1,982 in educational institutions). Sampling was by convenience, and a retrospective search was done for cases of CRS for the period mentioned. Results: Diagnoses compatible with CRS were found in 204,069 records, with the prevalence of the clinical picture reaching 3.9% of the general population associated with CRS, of whom 1,244 (0.6%) met the criteria for being designated suspicious, and 94 (8%) of these met the criteria for being defined as probable, and of these 4 (4,2%) were clinically confirmed. None were confirmed by laboratory analysis. Hospital data corresponding to compatible diagnoses were present in 202,087 (99%) records, of which 1,113 (0.6%) cases were classified as suspicious, 61 (5.4%) as probable, and 4 (0.4%) as clinically confirmed.   The greatest prevalence of cases was found at the Centro Maternal Infantil, with 6,814 compatible diagnoses. In the selected educational institutions, compatible diagnoses were found in 1,982 cases. The greatest prevalence of cases was found at the Santa Lucia School, with 108 cases of compatible diagnoses. Conclusion: Sufficient clinical information was found to document the existence of CRS in the country, with a prevalence of congenital disorders related to CRS of 3.9%.

Keywords : Rubella; congenital rubella syndrome; congenital disorders; Paraguay.

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