WATERBORNE DISEASES AND ITS MAJOR IMPACT IN BRAZIL: CONSEQUENCE OF CLIMATE CHANGE OR INEFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC POLICIES?

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: A population’s health depends directly on their access to safe water, because the consumption and contact with inappropriate water can cause waterborne diseases. This type of illnesses is more common in low- and middle-income countries, since the lack of drinking-water, sanitation and precarious hygiene conditions that many people in Brazil and globally face, leverage the infection by waterborne diseases. There is also a correlation between waterborne diseases and climate change. METHODOLOGY: Narrative literature review, based on articles available at Pubmed platform, using the keywords “Waterborne Diseases” and “Climate Change''; “Waterborne Diseases” and “Basic Sanitation”, also official guidelines from World Health Organization (WHO), Brazilian Ministry of Health, Fiocruz and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. After the application of filters and reading the abstract, 11 articles published in the last 20 years were chosen. RESULTS: Waterborne diseases are an important health problem, especially in low- and middle-income countries, like Brazil, because of its high prevalence, morbidity and mortality. The most relevant are: acute diarrheal disease, cholera, shigellosis, typhoid fever and hepatitis A and E. According to WHO, in low- and middle-income countries 829,000 deaths occurred in 2016 caused by diarrhea due to inadequate drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene conditions. This literature review is based on the analysis of official data about Brazil and Latin America. DISCUSSION: The access to inadequate drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene, leverage the dissemination of waterborne diseases. Also, the proliferation is impacted by climate changes, directly or indirectly. The majority of these diseases are considered primary care-sensitive conditions.  CONCLUSION: Based on the articles analysis, it is possible to infer that in Brazil, the social economical and climate background influence on the waterborne diseases dissemination, but efficient public politics can change this scenario reinforcing the primary care and ensuring access to safe water, hygiene and sanitation, basic population’s rights.