Acquired syphilis in older people in Brazil from 2010-2020

The infection caused by Treponema pallidum remains a severe public health problem, with a high prevalence in individuals over 60 years. However, research into infections such as syphilis continues to be neglected in geriatrics. This study aims to evaluate data on the detection rate of syphilis in Brazil, in individuals between 60 and 120 years, by characterizing the epidemiological profile and respective factors associated with it, in addition to performing a temporal trend analysis, from 2010 to 2020.

Ecological, time-series study, which started with the collection of notifications from the database of the Information System on Compulsory Notification of Diseases. The epidemiological profile was characterized based on sociodemographic variables. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences program, version 19.0, was used for incidence and prevalence analysis. The 2010 census by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics and projections for older people were considered. In the trend analysis, the Joinpoint regression model was used.

There was an upward variation in the detection of syphilis in older people from 2010 to 2018, with a peak in 2018. In 2019, there was a slight reduction in the notification of cases, which was accentuated in 2020. The prevalence of the infection was equivalent to 12.84 cases for each 100,000 Brazilians, with a mean age of 68.04 years (±7.15) for those between 60 and 120 years, being higher in white and black males. The highest proportion of older people with syphilis occurred in the South and Southeast regions. However, the trend analysis showed a significant and homogeneous increase in all regions of Brazil, for both sexes and all age groups.

There is a tendency for an increase in cases of syphilis in older people, which reinforces the need to plan health actions to combat the disease in this population.