PERFIL EPIDEMIOLÓGICO DOS CASOS DE DENGUE EM CRIANÇAS E ADOLESCENTES NO DISTRITO FEDERAL EM 2023 E 2024

Brazil experienced an explosion in dengue cases in 2024, especially in the Federal District (DF), the state with the highest incidence rate. Consequently, severe cases and deaths also increased in all age groups. Children with dengue, in turn, may present a nonspecific or severe infectious condition with sudden worsening. However, most deaths are preventable, including by understanding the epidemiological profile of this disease. Therefore, this study’s main objective is to analyze the epidemiological profile of dengue cases in the pediatric and adolescent population of the DF in the period from 2023 to 2024, in order to suggest correlations with public health determinants and propose preventive, care, and surveillance interventions. For this purpose, an observational ecological study was carried out, whose population data were extracted from TABNET – DATASUS and submitted to statistical analysis with the chi-square test, considering a significant p-value less than 0.005, and the composition of graphs and tables. In addition, a review of technical reports and epidemiological bulletins from the State Health Department of the Federal District (SES-DF), the Brazilian Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization, available on their online platforms, was carried out. From this, it was found that the epidemiological profile of dengue cases in the pediatric and adolescent population of the Federal District in the period from 2023 to 2024 was relatively in line with national findings, despite alarmingly higher proportions of cases in this Federation Unit. It was not possible, however, to assess with greater precision one of the main determinants of public health in dengue cases, which is epidemiological surveillance through geolocation, given the underreporting of cases with specification of the municipality or health region of the patient’s residence, a key point of the intervention proposal listed by this work.