Aspects related to positivity for schistosomiasis: a cross-sectional study in a low prevalence area in Alagoas, Brazil, 2020.

Objective: To analyze aspects related to schistosomiasis positivity in an area of low prevalence in Brazil.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study, carried out in the first half of 2020, where we analyzed the proportion of positivity, according to the number of Kato-Katz slides, the diagnostic performance of the test and positivity estimates based on data from the Schistosomiasis Surveillance and Control Program Information System (SISPCE).
Results: 2,088 slides from 348 individuals were analyzed, with proportion of positivity of 11.8%, 26.7% and 31.0% for 1, 4 and 6 slides analyzed, respectively. There was excellent agreement (Kappa = 0.91) between the readings of 4 and 6 slides. The SISPCE data was estimated to be underreported by up to 2.1 times.
Conclusion: Increasing the number of slides increased Kato-Katz positivity, which can contribute to maximizing the control of the disease as a Public Health problem.