Surveillance of the first cases of COVID-19 in Sergipe using a prospective spatiotemporal analysis: the spatial dispersion and its public health implications.

INTRODUCTION: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a global public health emergency with lethality ranging from 1% to 5%. This study aimed to identify active high-risk transmission clusters of COVID-19 in Sergipe.

METHODS: We performed a prospective space-time analysis using confirmed cases of COVID-19 during the first 7 weeks of the outbreak in Sergipe.

RESULTS: The prospective space-time statistic detected "active" and emerging spatio-temporal clusters comprising six municipalities in the south-central region of the state.

CONCLUSIONS: The Geographic Information System (GIS) associated with spatio-temporal scan statistics can provide timely support for surveillance and assist in decision-making.