Article
Health-risk assessment of Portuguese man-of-war (Physalia physalis) envenomations on urban beaches in São Luís city, in the state of Maranhão, Brazil
Registro en:
CAVALCANTE, Mayana Mendes e Silva et al. Health-risk assessment of Portuguese man-of-war (Physalia physalis) envenomations on urban beaches in São Luís city, in the state of Maranhão, Brazil. Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical, Uberaba, v. 53, p. 1-7, 2020.
0037-8682
10.1590/0037-8682-0216-2020
1678-9849
Autor
Cavalcante, Mayana Mendes e Silva
Rodrigues, Zulimar Márita Ribeiro
Hauser-Davis, Rachel Ann
Siciliano, Salvatore G.
Haddad Júnior, Vidal
Nunes, Jorge Luiz Silva
Resumen
Introduction: The Portuguese man-of-war (Physalia physalis) is a cosmopolitan species, with a widespread distribution and responsible
for a great number of injuries caused by cnidarians worldwide, including Brazil. Geoprocessing technology, however, has never been
used to assess the spatial distribution of these animals on beaches. The aim of this study was to carry out a health risk assessment of
Portuguese man-of-war (P. physalis) envenomations on the São Marcos and Calhau beaches in São Luís city, in the state of Maranhão,
Brazil. Methods: This is a descriptive and quantitative study concerning primary data on the occurrence of the Portuguese man-of-war
(P. physalis) and human envenomations in the studied places, conducted over a two-year period in São Luís, Maranhão, northeastern
Brazil. Results: Envenomations mainly occurred on beaches presenting high density of P. physalis during the dry period. Vinegar has
been incorporated as a first aid, according to recommendations set by the Brazilian Ministry of Health. Conclusions: In order to improve
prevention and control actions of human envenomation, risk areas for this type of envenomation should be clearly indicated as alert
areas. Inclusion of the geographical location of the envenomation in the Notification/Investigation SINAN Form was suggested for
allowing the continuity of studies involving this public health issue.