Environmental conditions and rodent infestation in Campo Limpo district, São Paulo municipality, Brazil

Abstract

Rodents are involved in the transmission to human beings of several diseases, including liptospirosis, which shows high lethality rates in São Paulo municipality. Despite this, few studies have assessed the relationship existing between urban environmental conditions and building rodent infestation. With the purpose of clarifying this relationship, an analysis has been conducted in order to quantify the influence of environmental factors upon rodent infestation on a low-income district. Diagnosis of the environmental situation has been performed to evaluate the frequency according to which harborage, food and access sources occur, and a survey on infestation rates in 2175 dwellings in the area studied. The logistic regression analysis showed that among the environmental variables, the one that showed the closest association with rodent infestation was access; followed by harborage, and food. It was concluded that poor socioeconomic and environmental conditions in the area propitiate the occurrence of high rodent infestation rates.

Keywords:

• rodent infestation
• environmental factors
• urban rodents

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dr Vera Allegro, Campo Limpo technical supervisor; the technical assistants Emile Melo and Miraci Peixoto; the coordinator of the Program for Rodent Control in São Paulo, Maria das Graças Santos; Campo Limpo submayor (subprefeito), Mr Heitor Sertão; the Zoonosis Agents from Coordinadoria de Saúde Região Sul (Southern Region Health Coordinatorship), specifically Ronaldo Oliveira, Alessandro Toledo, Marco Antônio, Edson Luís, Valmir Cícero, Sérgio Santos, and also Dr Francisco Pino for his assistance in the statistical review.