Spatial analysis of hospitalization rate for diabetes mellitus and its complications in the Brazilian population, 2007–2011

This study aimed to describe the distribution of hospitalization rates for diabetes and its complications in the Brazilian population aged 30–59 years, in 2007 and 2011, correlating with geographical location and health issues related to diabetes. Hospitalization data were from the National Health System 2007 and 2011 and were plotted on geographical maps by micro-regions, comparing them to the targets set for 2011. The rate of hospitalization for stroke and the proportion of the population enrolled in the Family Health Strategy program were also assessed. There were 50,679 adult hospitalizations in 2007 and 45,694 in 2011. In 2007 and 2011, respectively, 70.6 and 68.3 % of the 558 Brazilian micro-regions did not achieve the expected target. In 2007, 25.8 % of the micro-regions were in critical condition and in 2011 26.2 %. The hospitalization rates for diabetes and its complications are above the targets proposed, indicating that more efforts should be made to control the disease in Brazil. In addition, the use of administrative database, considering the geographical location, is an effective tool in monitoring public policies that produces results quickly and at low cost.