Data Resource Profile: Harmonized health survey data for 240 cities across 11 countries in Latin America: the SALURBAL project
2025

Harmonized Health Survey Data for 240 Cities in Latin America: The SALURBAL Project

Sample size: 721099 publication Evidence: high

Author Information

Author(s): Kari Moore, Mariana Lazo, Ana Ortigoza, D Alexander Quistberg, Brisa Sanchez, Binod Acharya, Tania Alfaro, Maria Fernanda Kroker-Lobos, Olga Lucia Sarmiento

Primary Institution: Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University

Hypothesis

How do urban environments and policies affect health, health equity, and environmental sustainability in Latin America?

Conclusion

The SALURBAL project provides a comprehensive data resource that characterizes urban health across 240 cities in 11 Latin American countries.

Supporting Evidence

  • The SALURBAL project is the largest health survey data resource in Latin America.
  • It includes data from 40 surveys conducted between 2000 and 2021.
  • The resource allows for the investigation of urban health determinants across diverse contexts.
  • Data includes individual-level demographic and health-related information for both adults and children.

Takeaway

The SALURBAL project collected health data from many cities in Latin America to help understand how city life affects people's health.

Methodology

The project harmonized data from 40 national health surveys across 11 countries, linking individual-level data to social, built, and natural environment data.

Potential Biases

Heterogeneity in data quality and availability across countries may introduce bias.

Limitations

The data resource has limitations including the lack of recent health survey data in some countries and reliance on self-reported outcomes.

Participant Demographics

The sample includes a diverse population in terms of age, socioeconomic background, and health status.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1093/ije/dyae171

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