Cystic echinococcosis in South America: a call for action/La equinococosis quística en América del Sur: un llamamiento a la acción/Hidatidose na America do Sul: um chamado a acao

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) or hydatidosis, a parasitic zoonosis caused by a cestode of the family Taeniidae, species Echinococcus granulosus, is endemic in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, and southern Brazil. This report presents CE figures for these five countries in 2009-2014 and proposes indicators to measure national control programs. Nearly 5 000 new CE cases were diagnosed annually in the five countries during the study period. The average case fatality rate was 2.9%, which suggests that CE led to approximately 880 deaths in these countries during the 6-year period. CE cases that required secondary or tertiary health care had average hospital stays of 10.6 days, causing a significant burden to health systems. The proportion of new cases (15%) in children less than 15 years of age suggests ongoing transmission. Despite figures showing that CE is not under control in South America, the long-standing implementation of national and local control programs in three of the five countries has achieved reductions in some of the indicators. The Regional Initiative for the Control of CE, which includes the five countries and provides a framework for networking and collaboration, must intensify its efforts. Keywords Echinococcosis granulosus; zoonoses, prevention & control; Argentina; Brazil; Chile; Peru; Uruguay; South America. La equinococosis quistica o hidatidosis, zoonosis parasitaria causada por un cestodo de la especie Echinococcus granulosus, familia Taeniidae, es endemica en Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay y el sur del Brasil. En este informe se presentan datos sobre la equinococosis quistica registrados en estos cinco paises entre los anos 2009 y 2014, y se proponen indicadores para medir el desempeno de los programas nacionales de control. Durante el periodo de estudio, en los cinco paises se diagnosticaron casi 5 000 casos nuevos por ano. La tasa de letalidad promedio fue del 2,9 %, lo que indica que la equinococosis quistica causo aproximadamente 880 defunciones en estos paises en el periodo de 6 anos estudiado. Los casos que debieron recibir atencion de salud secundaria o terciaria tuvieron una estadia hospitalaria promedio de 10,6 dias, lo que ha generado una carga significativa para los sistemas de salud. La proporcion de casos nuevos de ninos menores de 15 anos (15 %) indica que la transmision no se ha interrumpido. A pesar de que los datos muestran que la enfermedad no esta controlada en America del Sur, tres de los cinco paises disponen de pr