Varicella is an extremely contagious cosmopolitan disease. It is caused by the Varicella-Zoster Virus¹. Although it is not considered harmful in childhood, it has currently shown a rising incidence in several complications with a high mortality potential in previously healthy children and adults. The present work had as objective to characterize the epidemiological profile of varicella cases in patients of a university hospital located in Recife. It is a descriptive-exploratory study with a quantitative approach, performed from January 2004 to January of 2005, with patients admitted with varicella in a university hospital, Oswaldo Cruz, in Recife. Out of a total of 225 patients hospitalized with varicella, 53% were male; in 77.3% of cases, secondary bacterial infections were identified as the main complication, of which cellulites was the most frequent with 62.2% of cases; patients evolved to cure, albeit 2% of cases led to death. The cost-effectiveness study proved that R$ 61,710 would be saved if the study population had been vaccinated. Data shown in this research bring on the rationale of the importance of reduction in the number of cases of the disease, because there is a possibility of a non-satisfactory clinical course leading to death. In this sense, findings may lead managers to adopt preventive measures and plan health actions.
Characterize Epidemiological; Varicella; Complications
