01822nas a2200253   4500000000100000008004100001260000900042653001200051653002100063653000900084653001100093100001700104700001600121700001400137700001100151700001600162700001600178245004600194300001100240490000900251050001800260520127600278022001401554       2013                            d  c201310aleprosy10aUrban Population10aRisk10aBrazil1 aPaschoal JAA1 aPaschoal VD1 aNardi SMT1 aRosa P1 aIsmael MGSY1 aSichieri EP00aIdentification of urban leprosy clusters.  a2191430 v2013  aPASCHOAL 20133 aOverpopulation of urban areas results from constant migrations that cause disordered urban growth, constituting clusters defined as sets of people or activities concentrated in relatively small physical spaces that often involve precarious conditions. Aim. Using residential grouping, the aim was to identify possible clusters of individuals in São José do Rio Preto, Sao Paulo, Brazil, who have or have had leprosy. Methods. A population-based, descriptive, ecological study using the MapInfo and CrimeStat techniques, geoprocessing, and space-time analysis evaluated the location of 425 people treated for leprosy between 1998 and 2010. Clusters were defined as concentrations of at least 8 people with leprosy; a distance of up to 300 meters between residences was adopted. Additionally, the year of starting treatment and the clinical forms of the disease were analyzed. Results. Ninety-eight (23.1%) of 425 geocoded cases were located within one of ten clusters identified in this study, and 129 cases (30.3%) were in the region of a second-order cluster, an area considered of high risk for the disease. Conclusion. This study identified ten clusters of leprosy cases in the city and identified an area of high risk for the appearance of new cases of the disease.  a1537-744X