A key feature of this special supplement of the Pan American Journal of Public Health is its focus on the state of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the Caribbean. The negative value chain impact is its effects on economic growth and childhood educational outcomes. Thus, there is an ecological relationship between interventions to support dietary diversity, improving successful transitions from school to work and economic growth in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

The Caribbean Region is blessed by diversity. The ethnic diversities of the people who inhabit it. The language diversity reflecting the tongues of original native people, the colonial history and the people brought here from Africa and India, not to mention the languages and dialects and patois which developed in the Caribbean. So, it should be expected that the Caribbean would naturally have a diversity in the foods we eat and the ways in which they are prepared.

Food insecurity, obesity, and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are significant problems impeding human and economic development of small island nations and communities of the Caribbean Region. In addition, the Caribbean Community states remain prone to natural disasters and extreme weather events occurring at an increased frequency, attributed to climate change.

There is a lack of real-world surveillance studies on reports of adverse events associated with COVID-19 vaccination, as well as comparative analyses of adverse events from vaccines with different platforms. This observational, descriptive, retrospective study based on secondary data describes the adverse events following immunization (AEFIs) related to the first 145 000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines delivered in Aracaju municipality, Sergipe state, northeast Brazil. Records of AEFIs were collected using the e-SUS Notifica database for January 19 to April 30, 2021.

Objective

To describe cervical cancer (CC) prevention and control strategies in the primary care setting in South America.

Method

Two review steps were performed: review of documents published in governmental websites in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela; and systematic review of the literature available in LILACS, MEDLINE, Scopus, SciELO, and Science Direct databases.

Objective

To characterize the epidemiological and clinical profile of individuals more likely to become infected with SARS-CoV-2 after the fully vaccination schedule in order to profile priority groups to receive a booster dose in situations of vaccine doses shortage as well as for maintenance of personal protective care.

Objective

To identify nationwide temporal trends and spatial patterns of gastric cancer–related mortality in Brazil.

Methods

An ecological study was performed using death certificates registered from 2000 to 2019 in which gastric cancer was recorded as any cause of death (an underlying or associated cause). Trends over time were assessed using joinpoint regression models. Spatial and spatiotemporal clusters were identified by Kulldorff’s space–time scan statistics to identify high-risk areas.

Objectives

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) countries have made important progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets related to health (SDG3) at the national level. However, vast within-country health inequalities remain. We present a baseline of health inequalities in the region, against which progress towards the SDGs can be monitored.

Setting

We studied 21 countries in LAC using data from Demographic and Health Surveys and Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey carried out from 2011 to 2016.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed gaps and weaknesses in health care systems worldwide, but it has also highlighted countries’ capacity to respond and provided valuable lessons for the future. The pandemic has highlighted the need for countries to work together on scientific evidence production and vaccine development and elucidated the commonality of pandemic-related challenges, such as personal protective equipment unavailability and supply chain disruptions.

[Extract] Latin America emerged as one of the epicenters of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of March 2022, the region, representing only 8.4% of the world’s population, had more than 65 million confirmed cases, or 15% of cases worldwide, and more than 1.6 million deaths, or 28% of deaths worldwide. Latin America’s gross national product contractions resulting from the pandemic are estimated to be between 7% and 10%; these contractions have increased unemployment and poverty and exacerbated income inequality.