DATA OMISSION IN COMPULSORY NOTIFICATION FORMS RELATED TO HEPATITIS A, B AND C AND HIV CO-INFECTION

Introduction and Objectives

Co-infection with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) represents a significant public health challenge in Brazil, as it is associated with worsening clinical outcomes, such as accelerated progression of liver disease and increased morbidity and mortality.

To describe the rate of incomplete reporting related to HCV and HIV co-infection among individuals notified between 2013 and 2023 in the North region of Brazil.

Materials and Methods

This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted using data from the Notifiable Diseases Information System (Sinan) database for the period from 2013 to 2023. The variables used were viral hepatitis classification and co-infection with HIV. Subsequently, a descriptive analysis was performed to identify omissions in the HIV co-infection variable in viral hepatitis notifications.

Results

A high number (18.6%) of data omissions was observed regarding HIV and viral hepatitis co-infection. Among the types, the highest omission rate was observed in hepatitis A notifications (21.7%), followed by hepatitis C (20.3%) and hepatitis B (17%). Among the states, Roraima showed the highest percentage of omission of information on HIV diagnosis (23.2%).

Conclusions

The data reveal a significant percentage of omissions regarding the investigation of HIV co-infection in viral hepatitis notifications, especially for hepatitis A (21.7%), C (20.3%), and B (17%). This weakness in the completeness of information compromises epidemiological surveillance and health action planning.

Conflict of interest: None