Pneumonia in Children under 5 Years: Temporal Trends and Spatial Patterns of Hospitalizations in Brazil

Abstract

ABSTRACT. This study aimed to identify temporal and spatial patterns in the distribution of hospitalization rates for pneumonia in children under 5 years in Brazil. An ecological study was developed using data from the Unified Health System of hospitalizations for pneumonia in children under 5 years in Brazil from 2000 to 2019. Hospitalization rates per 1,000 children were calculated and Joinpoint Regression analyzed the temporal trends. Different spatial analysis techniques were performed. Annual rates of 25 hospitalizations per 1,000 children were observed in 2000 and of 13.83 per 1,000 children in 2019, with a significant downward trend for the country (annual percentage change = −3.4%; 95% confidence interval: −3.8 to −3.0) and for the regions. There was weak spatial autocorrelation; however, there were regions with high rates of hospitalization in the south region and clusters of low rates in the northeast and southeast. Clusters of areas with high hospitalization rates were observed in areas of favorable socioeconomic conditions and provision of health services in the interior of southern Brazil. There is a decreasing trend in hospitalizations for pneumonia in general; however, there are clusters of high rates in the south of Brazil.