Abstract INTRODUCTION:

The aim of this study was to characterize the clinical-epidemiological profile of Chikungunya virus infection and the factors associated with hospitalization during the peak of the most recent epidemic period in Brazil (2016-2017). METHODS Two official databases of the State Health Secretariat of Ceará were used, and a total of 182,731 notifications were analyzed. RESULTS Independent factors associated with hospital admission were chronic kidney disease (OR 4.56, 95% CI 3.36-6.17), hypertension (OR 1.90, 95% CI 1.69-2.14), leukopenia (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.56-2.30) and diabetes mellitus (OR 1.70, 95% CI 1.44-1.99). CONCLUSIONS The pre-existing comorbidities have shown the potential to destabilize the patients' clinical status.