Introduction: Even though Guatemala is an endemic country for cysticercosis and neurocysticercosis, studies on this public health condition are limited. The objective of this study was to explore the official records of human cysticercosis for Guatemala and the contribution of different factors to the count of observed cases.
Materials and Methods: A retrospective study of official data from the Guatemalan Ministries of Health for the years 2011 to 2019, exploring and analyzing the count of cases through Generalized Linear Models.
Results: 353 cases of human cysticercosis are reported for 21 departments of Guatemala with an arithmetic mean of 39.2 cases per year (standard deviation = 11). 70% of the patients have ages between 10 and 40 years, predominantly women with 239 cases (114 cases of men). Considering the category of ‘man’ as the reference value for GLM models, the category of ‘woman’ presents a greater and significant contribution (z-value = 1.92, P-value < 0.05).
Discussion: The number of cases of cysticercosis at a geographical and temporal level in Guatemalan territory suggests a greater number of women affected by this neglected tropical disease.
Keywords:
Neglected diseases, Taenia solium, Zoonoses
Author Biography
Manuel Lepe-Lopez, Universidad Andrés Bello. Facultad de Ciencias de la Vida. Centro de Investigación para la Sustentabilidad
PhD Program in Conservation Medicine, Facultad de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello
Valenzuela-Toj, K. ., & Lepe-Lopez, M. . (2023). Cysticercosis in Guatemala: an exploration of cases that suggests the relevance of biological sex. Revista Chilena De Salud Pública, 26(2), p. 154–163. https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-5281.2022.71181
