SOCIAL INEQUALITIES AND THE PERSISTENCE OF TROPICAL DISEASES IN BRAZIL: CHALLENGES FOR PUBLIC HEALTH

This study aimed to analyze the influence of social inequities on the persistence of tropical diseases in Brazil, highlighting the structural determinants involved and their implications for public health. It is an integrative literature review with a qualitative and descriptive-analytical approach, conducted in the SciELO, LILACS, PubMed/MEDLINE, and Scopus databases between 2021 and 2026. Studies that explicitly addressed the relationship between tropical diseases and social inequalities in the Brazilian context were included. The results showed that diseases such as tuberculosis, dengue, leishmaniasis, leprosy, Chagas disease, leptospirosis, and venomous animal envenomings present spatial and social distributions associated with poverty, territorial inequality, structural racism, precarious housing conditions, and limited access to health services. Interventions focused exclusively on the biomedical model were found to have limited impact when not integrated with intersectoral public policies. In summary, the persistence of tropical diseases in Brazil is deeply related to structural inequities, requiring integrated strategies that combine health surveillance, strengthening of primary health care, social policies, and the promotion of equity.