Distribuição espacial da cobertura vacinal contra o HPV no Maranhão

Abstract

Vaccination coverage (CV) is an important indicator of population health and the quality of care provided by basic health services. It is estimated that one in ten people are infected with Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and, it is a virus known to cause cervical cancer, in addition to being related to several other types of cancer. The objective is to describe the spatial distribution of vaccination coverage against HPV in Maranhão. This is an ecological, descriptive study on vaccination coverage against HPV in the State of Maranhão between 2017 and 2018, with the municipalities as the unit of analysis, the target audience was female (9 to 14 years old) and the male (11 to 14 years old), who received the doses of the HPV vaccine during the study period, registered in the Information System of the National Immunization Program (SI-PNI) and in the database of the state department of Immunization, of the State Health Secretariat. A descriptive analysis of vaccination coverage was carried out by municipalities in Maranhão, using maps according to sex, age, followed by the study of the spatial pattern. It was observed that in the year 2017, 736,430 individuals were able to receive the HPV vaccine in the state of Maranhão; of these, only 30.99% females and 39.42% males received the vaccine; in 2018, 736,436 individuals were able to receive the HPV vaccine, with only 21.99% females and 31.79% males receiving the vaccine. The findings presented suggest low coverage and heterogeneity in the doses of the HPV vaccine in the state of Maranhão. It is concluded that vaccination coverage against HPV in the municipalities in Maranhão is low in relation to the goal advocated by the Ministry of Health and that there are significant differences in coverage by sex, age and municipalities, therefore requiring greater direction in the vaccination strategy.