BACKGROUND Schistosomiasis mansoni is a poverty-related parasitic infection that has a variety of clinical manifestations. We consider the disability and deaths caused by schistosomiasis unacceptable for a tool-ready disease. Its condition in Brazil warrants an analysis that will enable better understanding of the local health losses and contribute to the complex decision-making process.OBJECTIVE This study estimates the cost of schistosomiasis in Brazil in 2015.METHODS We conducted a cost of illness study of schistosomiasis mansoni in Brazil in 2015 based on a prevalence approach and from a societal perspective. The study included 26,499 schistosomiasis carriers, 397 hepatosplenic cases, 48 cases with the neurological form, 284 hospitalisations, and 11,368.26 years of life lost (YLL) of which 5,187 years are attributable to economically active age groups.RESULTS The total cost of schistosomiasis mansoni in Brazil was estimated to be US$ 41,7million in 2015 with 94.61% of this being indirect costs.CONCLUSIONS The economic burden of schistosomiasis mansoni in Brazil is high and results in the loss of productivity. Its persistence in Brazil is a challenge to public health and requires inter-sectorial interventions in areas such as indoor water supply, basic sanitation, and education.

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Introduction: Schistosomiasis is a disease endemic in Brazil. We analyzed the death records from the Brazilian Mortality Information System with the aim of retrieving deaths due to schistosomiasis and describing the patients that evolved to death in Brazil in the year of 2015. Methods: We evaluated the death certificates for retrieving basic causes due to schistosomiasis, estimated the mortality rate and described the sociodemographic characteristics of patients. Result: To retrieve the basic cause, we analyzed 150 death certificates and we found 39 (26%). Of the 406 studied deaths, 111 (27.3%) occurred in people aged between 60 and 69 and 101 (24.9%) between 70 and 79. Regarding the educational level, 196 (62.4%) had not concluded the elementary school and 85 (27.1%) had never studied. As to race/skin color, 248 deaths (65.1%) occurred in black or pardo. Pernambuco registered more deaths, with 119 (29.3%). Alagoas was the state presenting the highest mortality rate, with 1.62/100,000 residents. As immediate causes of death, most of them, 118 (29.1%), occurred by hypovolemic shock. Conclusions: Deaths were more frequent in older ages, consistent with the disease chronic evolution, in people with lower educational level, and in subjects that reported themselves as black or pardo.