Factores pronósticos de síndrome cardio-pulmonar y muerte por hantavirus andes sur: estudio de cohorte en San Carlos de Bariloche y su zona de influencia sanitaria

Abstract

Hantavirus infections occur through the inhalation of aerosols from the excreta of infected rodents. These viruses cause a cardiopulmonary syndrome in the case of the Andes Sur variant, with a mortality that can reach 50%. It occurs in sporadic cases or in small clusters, in which interhuman contagion predominates. In this historical cohort-type observational study, in people infected with Andes Sur hantavirus during the years 2009 to 2019 who was assisted in the public health subsector of San Carlos de Bariloche (Argentina), it was sought to identify factors that could predict poor evolution (cardiopulmonary syndrome and death). For this, the risk for each of the variables was characterized and, to obtain key information about the relationships between them, a multiple correspondence analysis was also applied. During the study period, 38 people were included. The mean age was 35 years. Person-to-person contagion was suspected in 10/38 (26.8%) cases. 21.1% (8/28) presented a hantavirus pulmonary syndrome at the time of diagnosis, while 55.3% (21/38) developed it during their evolution, and 44.7% (17/38) of those infected died during hospitalization. Age over 15 years and thrombocytopenia were associated with a higher risk of clinical progression, while mild forms or asymptomatic people, person-to-person transmission, or during an epidemiological outbreak, were associated with a lower risk of death.