[Trends in morbidity for respiratory diseases among hospitalized patients in the city of São Paulo].

OBJECTIVES

To analyze trends in morbidity due to respiratory diseases, using hospital admissions in the city of São Paulo from 1995 to 2000. To describe the evolution of the morbidity for respiratory diseases in general and for pneumonias, for asthma and for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), by sex and age.

METHODS

The information on hospital admissions for all ages and causes were obtained from the Hospitalizations Information System of the Brazilian Ministry of Health (DATASUS). Descriptive analysis of patterns and trends were performed.

RESULTS

There was a decreasing trend in the absolute number and the rate of hospitalization for respiratory illnesses for all ages but not uniformly during the period. For COPD, an increasing trend was observed, especially for the elderly. The male population was more affected than the female in all years, for any studied causes with the exception of asthma. The pneumonias represented the most important cause of hospitalizations, with 47% of all respiratory admissions. Important seasonal pattern was observed for pneumonia admissions.

CONCLUSION

In this period of 6 years, our analyses had disclosed an important participation of pneumonias as a cause for respiratory admissions. However, these diseases presented a decreasing trend, in contrast to chronic illnesses such as COPD and asthma. These results point out to a changing pattern in the respiratory morbidity with direct consequences for public health policy making.