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The Socio-Environmental Determinants Underlying the Spatial: Epidemiology of Dengue

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Global Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2021) | Viewed by 30742

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Dr. Richard Paul

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Functional Genetics of Infectious Diseases Unit, Institut Pasteur, 25 Rue du Dr. Roux, CEDEX 15, 75724 Paris, France
Interests: dengue; malaria; transmission; reservoir of infection; urban ecology; vector control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Dear Colleagues,

Dengue is a rapidly emerging mosquito-borne infection, caused by any one of four viral serotypes (denoted DENV- 1, 2, 3, and 4), with an increase in incidence of thirty-fold over the last 50 years. The disease is endemic in over 100 countries. More than 3.5 billion people are at risk of DENV infection, and recent estimates suggest that there are 390 million DENV infections every year, of which 100 million cause clinical symptoms. The increase in the global transmission of this disease has been linked to several factors such as, global trade, international travel, rapid urbanization, and ineffective vector control strategies.

The dengue virus is mainly transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which are widely present in tropical and subtropical areas, and well-adapted to an urban environment. Dengue risk is associated with climatic factors, particularly temperature and rainfall, which impact on the mosquito abundance and vectorial capacity. Urbanization has been frequently linked with the endemicity of the disease, where high population density coupled with poor environmental hygiene provides a conducive environment for mosquito vector breeding and an increased probability of transmission. Dengue is associated with a wide range of socioeconomic factors that alter risk of exposure to infectious mosquitoes, and that can vary at very local scales. However, these associated risk factors are not systematic, vary extensively in definition, and may often not be generally applicable. Moreover, the city-wide and even region-wide impact they have is influenced by the role of human mobility, ferrying the virus from places of high environmental risk elsewhere. The identification of the source of infection and the subsequent socio-spatial structure of the intra-urban and inter-urban spread of DENV would clearly aid the local public health services to better allocate resources.

This Special Issue aims to bring together articles that place socio-economic risk factors within specific defined urban contexts, articulated with human mobility networks at local and regional scales, all with a view of developing intervention and control strategies.

Dr. Richard Paul
Guest Editor

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Keywords

dengue and other arboviruses
socio-economic risk factors
human mobility networks
disease mitigation

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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25 pages, 7876 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Development and Comparison of Dengue Vulnerability Indices Using GIS-Based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis in Lao PDR and Thailand

by Sumaira Zafar, Oleg Shipin, Richard E. Paul, Joacim Rocklöv, Ubydul Haque, Md. Siddikur Rahman, Mayfong Mayxay, Chamsai Pientong, Sirinart Aromseree, Petchaboon Poolphol, Tiengkham Pongvongsa, Nanthasane Vannavong and Hans J. Overgaard

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(17), 9421; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18179421 - 6 Sep 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3715

Abstract

Dengue is a continuous health burden in Laos and Thailand. We assessed and mapped dengue vulnerability in selected provinces of Laos and Thailand using multi-criteria decision approaches. An ecohealth framework was used to develop dengue vulnerability indices (DVIs) that explain links between population, social and physical environments, and health to identify exposure, susceptibility, and adaptive capacity indicators. Three DVIs were constructed using two objective approaches, Shannon’s Entropy (SE) and the Water-Associated Disease Index (WADI), and one subjective approach, the Best-Worst Method (BWM). Each DVI was validated by correlating the index score with dengue incidence for each spatial unit (district and subdistrict) over time. A Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r) larger than 0.5 and a p-value less than 0.05 implied a good spatial and temporal performance. Spatially, DVI_WADI was significantly correlated on average in 19% (4–40%) of districts in Laos (mean r = 0.5) and 27% (15–53%) of subdistricts in Thailand (mean r = 0.85). The DVI_SE was validated in 22% (12–40%) of districts in Laos and in 13% (3–38%) of subdistricts in Thailand. The DVI_BWM was only developed for Laos because of lack of data in Thailand and was significantly associated with dengue incidence on average in 14% (0–28%) of Lao districts. The DVI_WADI indicated high vulnerability in urban centers and in areas with plantations and forests. In 2019, high DVI_WADI values were observed in sparsely populated areas due to elevated exposure, possibly from changes in climate and land cover, including urbanization, plantations, and dam construction. Of the three indices, DVI_WADI was the most suitable vulnerability index for the study area. The DVI_WADI can also be applied to other water-associated diseases, such as Zika and chikungunya, to highlight priority areas for further investigation and as a tool for prevention and interventions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Socio-Environmental Determinants Underlying the Spatial: Epidemiology of Dengue)

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11 pages, 1768 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of Neighborhood Socio-Economic Status, as Measured by the Delphi Method, on Dengue Fever Distribution in Jeddah City, Saudi Arabia

by Ibrahim Alkhaldy and Pauline Barnett

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(12), 6407; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18126407 - 13 Jun 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3612

Abstract

Dengue fever, a mosquito-transmitted viral disease, is present in many neighborhoods in Jeddah City, Saudi Arabia. One factor likely to affect its distribution is the socio-economic status of local neighborhoods; however, the absence of socio-economic census data in Saudi Arabia has precluded detailed investigation. This study aims to develop a proxy measure of socio-economic status in Jeddah City in order to assess its relationship with the occurrence of dengue fever. The Delphi method was used to assess the socio-economic status (high, medium or low) of local neighborhoods in Jeddah City. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was applied to understand the distribution of dengue fever according to the socio-economic status of Jeddah City neighborhoods. Low-socio-economic status neighborhoods in south Jeddah City, with poor environmental conditions and high levels of poverty and population density, reported most cases of dengue fever. Nevertheless, dengue continues to increase in high socio-economic status neighborhoods in the northern part of the city, possibly due to ideal breeding conditions caused by the presence of standing water associated with high levels of construction. Moreover, the low-socioeconomic-status neighborhoods had the highest average number of cases, being 3.95 times that of high-status neighborhoods for the period 2006–2009. The Delphi approach can produce a useful and robust measure of socio-economic status for use in the analysis of patterns of dengue fever. Results suggest that there are nuances in the relationship between socio-economic status and dengue that indicate that higher status areas are also at risk. A useful additional tool for researchers in Saudi Arabia would be the development of census data or other systematic measures that allow socio-economic status to be included in spatial analyses of dengue fever and other diseases. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Socio-Environmental Determinants Underlying the Spatial: Epidemiology of Dengue)

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23 pages, 27359 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ecological, Social, and Other Environmental Determinants of Dengue Vector Abundance in Urban and Rural Areas of Northeastern Thailand

by Md. Siddikur Rahman, Tipaya Ekalaksananan, Sumaira Zafar, Petchaboon Poolphol, Oleg Shipin, Ubydul Haque, Richard Paul, Joacim Rocklöv, Chamsai Pientong and Hans J. Overgaard

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(11), 5971; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18115971 - 2 Jun 2021

Cited by 27 | Viewed by 6946

Abstract

Aedes aegypti is the main vector of dengue globally. The variables that influence the abundance of dengue vectors are numerous and complex. This has generated a need to focus on areas at risk of disease transmission, the spatial-temporal distribution of vectors, and the factors that modulate vector abundance. To help guide and improve vector-control efforts, this study identified the ecological, social, and other environmental risk factors that affect the abundance of adult female and immature Ae. aegypti in households in urban and rural areas of northeastern Thailand. A one-year entomological study was conducted in four villages of northeastern Thailand between January and December 2019. Socio-demographic; self-reported prior dengue infections; housing conditions; durable asset ownership; water management; characteristics of water containers; knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding climate change and dengue; and climate data were collected. Household crowding index (HCI), premise condition index (PCI), socio-economic status (SES), and entomological indices (HI, CI, BI, and PI) were calculated. Negative binomial generalized linear models (GLMs) were fitted to identify the risk factors associated with the abundance of adult females and immature Ae. aegypti. Urban sites had higher entomological indices and numbers of adult Ae. aegypti mosquitoes than rural sites. Overall, participants’ KAP about climate change and dengue were low in both settings. The fitted GLM showed that a higher abundance of adult female Ae. aegypti was significantly (p < 0.05) associated with many factors, such as a low education level of household respondents, crowded households, poor premise conditions, surrounding house density, bathrooms located indoors, unscreened windows, high numbers of wet containers, a lack of adult control, prior dengue infections, poor climate change adaptation, dengue, and vector-related practices. Many of the above were also significantly associated with a high abundance of immature mosquito stages. The GLM model also showed that maximum and mean temperature with four-and one-to-two weeks of lag were significant predictors (p < 0.05) of the abundance of adult and immature mosquitoes, respectively, in northeastern Thailand. The low KAP regarding climate change and dengue highlights the engagement needs for vector-borne disease prevention in this region. The identified risk factors are important for the critical first step toward developing routine Aedes surveillance and reliable early warning systems for effective dengue and other mosquito-borne disease prevention and control strategies at the household and community levels in this region and similar settings elsewhere. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Socio-Environmental Determinants Underlying the Spatial: Epidemiology of Dengue)

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15 pages, 4277 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Bibliometric Analysis on Dengue Outbreaks in Tropical and Sub-Tropical Climates Worldwide Since 1950

by Shin-Yueh Liu, Tsair-Wei Chien, Ting-Ya Yang, Yu-Tsen Yeh, Willy Chou and Julie Chi Chow

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(6), 3197; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18063197 - 19 Mar 2021

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3611

Abstract

Severe dengue outbreaks (DOs) affect the majority of Asian and Latin American countries. Whether all DOs always occurred in sub-tropical and tropical areas (STTA) has not been verified. We downloaded abstracts by searching keywords “dengue (MeSH Major Topic)” from Pubmed Central since 1950, including three collections: country names in abstracts (CNA), no abstracts (WA), and no country names in abstracts (Non-CNA). Visualizations were created to present the DOs across countries/areas in STTA. The percentages of mentioned country names and authors’ countries in STTA were computed on the CNA and Non-CNA bases. The social network analysis was applied to highlight the most cited articles and countries. We found that (1) three collections are 3427 (25.48%), 3137 (23.33%), and 6884 (51.19%) in CNA, WA, and Non-CNA, respectively; (2) the percentages of 94.3% and 79.9% were found in the CNA and Non-CNA groups; (3) the most mentioned country in abstracts were India, Thailand, and Brazil; (4) most authors in the Non-CNA collections were from the United States, Brazil, and China; (5) the most cited article (PMID = 23563266) authored by Bhatt et al. had 2604 citations since 2013. Our findings provide in-depth insights into the DO knowledge. The research approaches are recommended for authors in research on other infectious diseases in the future, not just limited to the DO topic. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Socio-Environmental Determinants Underlying the Spatial: Epidemiology of Dengue)

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19 pages, 2686 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Dengue Seroprevalence and Seroconversion in Urban and Rural Populations in Northeastern Thailand and Southern Laos

by Dyna Doum, Hans J. Overgaard, Mayfong Mayxay, Sutas Suttiprapa, Prasert Saichua, Tipaya Ekalaksananan, Panwad Tongchai, Md. Siddikur Rahman, Ubydul Haque, Sysavanh Phommachanh, Tiengkham Pongvongsa, Joacim Rocklöv, Richard Paul and Chamsai Pientong

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(23), 9134; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17239134 - 7 Dec 2020

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 4501 | Correction

Abstract

Dengue is the most rapidly spreading mosquito-borne viral disease in the world. The detection of clinical cases enables us to measure the incidence of dengue infection, whereas serological surveys give insights into the prevalence of infection. This study aimed to determine dengue seroprevalence and seroconversion rates in northeastern Thailand and southern Laos and to assess any association of mosquito control methods and socioeconomic factors with dengue virus (DENV) infection. Cross-sectional seroprevalence surveys were performed in May and November 2019 on the same individuals. Blood samples were collected from one adult and one child, when possible, in each of 720 randomly selected households from two urban and two rural sites in both northeastern Thailand and southern Laos. IgG antibodies against DENV were detected in serum using a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit. Overall, 1071 individuals participated in the study. The seroprevalence rate was high (91.5%) across all 8 study sites. Only age and province were associated with seroprevalence rates. There were 33 seroconversions during the period from May to November, of which seven reported fever. More than half of the seroconversions occurred in the rural areas and in Laos. Dengue seroconversion was significantly associated with young age (<15 years old), female gender, province, and duration of living in the current residence. No socioeconomic factors or mosquito control methods were found to be associated with seroprevalence or seroconversion. Notably, however, the province with most seroconversions had lower diurnal temperature ranges than elsewhere. In conclusion, our study has highlighted the homogeneity of dengue exposure across a wide range of settings and most notably those from rural and urban areas. Dengue can no longer be considered to be solely an urban disease nor necessarily one linked to poverty. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Socio-Environmental Determinants Underlying the Spatial: Epidemiology of Dengue)

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14 pages, 1896 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Past, Present, and Future Vulnerability to Dengue in Jamaica: A Spatial Analysis of Monthly Variations

by Sheika Henry and Francisco de Assis Mendonça

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(9), 3156; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17093156 - 1 May 2020

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 5147

Abstract

Over the years, Jamaica has experienced sporadic cases of dengue fever. Even though the island is vulnerable to dengue, there is paucity in the spatio-temporal analysis of the disease using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing tools. Further, access to time series dengue data at the community level is a major challenge on the island. This study therefore applies the Water-Associated Disease Index (WADI) framework to analyze vulnerability to dengue in Jamaica based on past, current and future climate change conditions using three scenarios: (1) WorldClim rainfall and temperature dataset from 1970 to 2000; (2) Climate Hazard Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS) rainfall and land surface temperature (LST) as proxy for air temperature from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) for the period 2002 to 2016, and (3) maximum temperature and rainfall under the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 8.5 climate change scenario for 2030. downscaled at 25 km based on the Regional Climate Model, RegCM4.3.5. Although vulnerability to dengue varies spatially and temporally, a higher vulnerability was depicted in urban areas in comparison to rural areas. The results also demonstrate the possibility for expansion in the geographical range of dengue in higher altitudes under climate change conditions based on scenario 3. This study provides an insight into the use of data with different temporal and spatial resolution in the analysis of dengue vulnerability. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Socio-Environmental Determinants Underlying the Spatial: Epidemiology of Dengue)

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1 pages, 253 KiB

Open AccessCorrection

Correction: Doum, D., et al. Dengue Seroprevalence and Seroconversion in Urban and Rural Populations in Northeastern Thailand and Southern Laos. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 9134

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(4), 1439; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18041439 - 4 Feb 2021

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There was an error in the original article [...] Full article

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