The seminar “Let’s find a solution to syphilis” has covered a series of lectures with researchers, academics and doctors during the Journey of the Infectious Diseases Department. The seminar was held on October 30th, at the Oscar Freire Institute, aiming to find paths to fight the disease, which has been increasing in occurrence in the country.
According to Professor Valdir Sabbaga Amato, of the Infectious Diseases Department of FMUSP, “the Infectology Division of FMUSP conducts events like this twice a year, one in each semester. The goal is the dissemination of information related to projects of professors, academics and researchers. The projects are presented to spread ideas, no matter the stage in which they are, and to arouse the interest of students and doctors for research – this is the foundation of it all”.
The seminar counted on the participation of the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), the Infectology Institute “Emilio Ribas”, the Reference and Treatment Center of DST/AIDS of the State Government and the City Program of DST/AIDS of São Paulo, besides the presence of researchers from the Technological Innovation Laboratory (LAIS) of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, who were invited to present the progress of the “Sífilis Não” Project, developed by the LAIS teams and it has been operating for a year and a half.
According to Professor Ricardo Valentim, head of the Research Management Sector of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte and one of the developers of the “Sífilis Não” Project, “one of the many goals of the project is to help health professionals with the diagnosis and treatment of syphilis, which are still a problem. The lack of knowledge of the population regarding the theme is still great and, therefore, we intend to bring information about the disease to the society”.
The data of the Syphilis Epidemiological Bulletin, published by the Health Ministry in 2018, point out there has been an increase in the number of cases in Brazil since 2016. The escalation was about 28,5% of syphilis in pregnant women, 31,8% of acquired syphilis, and 16,4% of congenital syphilis (transmitted to the fetus through the placenta). In the face of these data, the conference acts as a way for the academy to discuss the matter and propose solutions and projects based on the studies and researches presented.
The professors Esper Kallás and Anna Sara Shafferman Levin, of the Infectious Diseases Department of FMUSP, were part of the seminar. According to Professor Esper, “the great outcome of the seminar was the expansion of knowledge, the spread of information and the creation of a necessary environment to propose a collaborative project and to build new knowledge on the disease, besides finding a solution to fight the epidemics”. Professor Ana Sara completes: “For the first time, this gathering was held to plan a bigger project”.
