Spatial and temporal analysis of attacks by common vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus) on humans in the rural Brazilian Amazon basin

This article attempts to investigate the effects of the notification of wounds caused by Desmodus rotundus in humans in the rural zone of the eastern Brazilian Amazon basin. We analyzed data on bat attacks for the period between 2007 and 2012, provided by the Para State Secretariat for Municipal Public Health (SMS) and the Para State Agricultural Defense Agency (ADEPARA). We recorded 121 attacks in humans in the municipality of Pacaja, in 28 localities, including both rural and urban areas. Urban cases accounted for almost a fifth (19.8%) of all records. No significant variation was found in the number of cases recorded each year (H=7.28, d.f. = 5, P = 0.20), although significant variation was found in the spatial distribution of the reports (Q = 17.08, d.f. = 5, P < 0.01), reflecting the heterogeneity of the occurrence of attacks. Our conclusion is that the major reduction in the number of reported attacks on humans by hematophagous bats in the municipality of Pacaja is a positive result of the notification by the local people to the public health authorities, which appears to be an effective tool of the prophylactic scheme to control this epizootic in the rural zone of the Brazilian Amazon basin.