RECONFIGURATION OF NEGLECTED DISEASES IN THE FACE OF 21ST CENTURY SOCIO-ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSFORMATIONS

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Discuss the reconfiguration of neglected items in the face of socio-environmental transformations of the 21st century. METHODS: This is a narrative review of literature, of a descriptive nature and qualitative approach, carried out on the basis of PubMed/MEDLINE, Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO), Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde (BVS). Foram used indexed descriptors in DeCS/MeSH, in Portuguese and English, such as “Neglected Doenças”, “Public Health”, “Social Vulnerability”, “Infectious Doenças” and “Urbanização”, combined with the Boolean operators AND and OR. Foram including articles, dissertações, theses and institutional documents published between 2017 and 2026, available in their entirety and related to socio-environmental transformations associated with neglected doenças. After applying two eligibility criteria, 7 composite productions are subjected to final analysis. RESULTS: An analysis demonstrated the association between social vulnerability, sanitary deficiency, environmental degradation and disordered urban expansion in the maintenance and expansion of neglected areas. Verificou-se territorial expansion of arboviruses, hanseníase, schistosomoses and Chagas disease, as well as the adaptation of vectors to new urban environments. Fragilities related to epidemiological surveillance, under-reporting and insufficiency of intersectoral confrontation policies were also identified. CONCLUSION: Contemporary socio-environmental transformations will significantly modify the epidemiological patterns of neglected diseases, demanding strengthening of health surveillance, expansion of basic sanitation actions and integration between environmental, social and health policies. The work contributes to broaden the understanding of the relationship between environment, social inequality and persistence of these aggravations in the context of contemporary public health.