[AIDS in children: the influence of socioeconomic differences in Fortaleza, Ceará State, Brazil].

This study aimed to analyze the relationship between pediatric AIDS cases and neighborhood socioeconomic characteristics in Fortaleza, Ceará State, Brazil. This was an ecological and descriptive study with socioeconomic data from the 2010 Population Census and AIDS data in children for 2001-2011 from the Information System on Notifiable Diseases. Pearson's correlation was performed and the Moran index was used to verify spatial autocorrelation. A multinomial model was used to identify clusters. Of the total sample, 57.8% were male. In 18.8% of the children, the diagnosis was made after two years of age. There was a positive spatial correlation between AIDS cases in children and income (I = 0.6; p = 0.001) and the proportion of poor (I = 0.5; p = 0.001). Neighborhoods with these characteristics are mainly located in the Northwest and Southwest areas of the city. Spatial correlation between pediatric AIDS cases and socioeconomic indicators highlights the need for interventions aimed at improving health and living conditions.