Revisión de la producción académica latinoamericana sobre desigualdades en mortalidad 2007-2014

Abstract

This article is a literature review on inequalities/inequities in health in Latin America. Scielo and Lilacs databases were reviewed between the years 2000 and 2014. The articles were classified into three categories: mortality and theoretical articles, inequalities in morbidity and self-perception of health condition, and access to health services. We carried out a critical analysis of mortality articles between the years 2007 and 2014, the period with the highest proportion of academic production. More research articles were found in Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, especially in universities with emerging collaboration networks. The most used methodologies were theoretical reviews, ecological and cross-section studies, and a prevailing use of the model of social determinants of health of the WHO. The categories used were: social class, economic position, gender, ethnicity/race, and geographical unit. It was concluded that there are gaps between the theoretical discussion and the empirical research, a concentration of production in a few countries, little use of other theoretical approaches, and a need to strengthen collaboration between institutions.