scholarly journals Global Change and Human Vulnerability to Vector-Borne Diseases

2004 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 136-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert W. Sutherst

SUMMARY Global change includes climate change and climate variability, land use, water storage and irrigation, human population growth and urbanization, trade and travel, and chemical pollution. Impacts on vector-borne diseases, including malaria, dengue fever, infections by other arboviruses, schistosomiasis, trypanosomiasis, onchocerciasis, and leishmaniasis are reviewed. While climate change is global in nature and poses unknown future risks to humans and natural ecosystems, other local changes are occurring more rapidly on a global scale and are having significant effects on vector-borne diseases. History is invaluable as a pointer to future risks, but direct extrapolation is no longer possible because the climate is changing. Researchers are therefore embracing computer simulation models and global change scenarios to explore the risks. Credible ranking of the extent to which different vector-borne diseases will be affected awaits a rigorous analysis. Adaptation to the changes is threatened by the ongoing loss of drugs and pesticides due to the selection of resistant strains of pathogens and vectors. The vulnerability of communities to the changes in impacts depends on their adaptive capacity, which requires both appropriate technology and responsive public health systems. The availability of resources in turn depends on social stability, economic wealth, and priority allocation of resources to public health.

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar Daniel Salomón ◽  
María Gabriela Quintana ◽  
Andrea Verónica Mastrángelo ◽  
María Soledad Fernández

Vector-borne diseases closely associated with the environment, such as leishmaniases, have been a usual argument about the deleterious impact of climate change on public health. From the biological point of view interaction of different variables has different and even conflicting effects on the survival of vectors and the probability transmission of pathogens. The results on ecoepidemiology of leishmaniasis in Argentina related to climate variables at different scales of space and time are presented. These studies showed that the changes in transmission due to change or increase in frequency and intensity of climatic instability were expressed through changes in the probability of vector-human reservoir effective contacts. These changes of contact in turn are modulated by both direct effects on the biology and ecology of the organisms involved, as by perceptions and changes in the behavior of the human communities at risk. Therefore, from the perspective of public health and state policy, and taking into account the current nonlinear increased velocity of climate change, we concluded that discussing the uncertainties of large-scale models will have lower impact than to develop-validate mitigation strategies to be operative at local level, and compatibles with sustainable development, conservation biodiversity, and respect for cultural diversity.


2015 ◽  
Vol 370 (1665) ◽  
pp. 20130552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diarmid Campbell-Lendrum ◽  
Lucien Manga ◽  
Magaran Bagayoko ◽  
Johannes Sommerfeld

Vector-borne diseases continue to contribute significantly to the global burden of disease, and cause epidemics that disrupt health security and cause wider socioeconomic impacts around the world. All are sensitive in different ways to weather and climate conditions, so that the ongoing trends of increasing temperature and more variable weather threaten to undermine recent global progress against these diseases. Here, we review the current state of the global public health effort to address this challenge, and outline related initiatives by the World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners. Much of the debate to date has centred on attribution of past changes in disease rates to climate change, and the use of scenario-based models to project future changes in risk for specific diseases. While these can give useful indications, the unavoidable uncertainty in such analyses, and contingency on other socioeconomic and public health determinants in the past or future, limit their utility as decision-support tools. For operational health agencies, the most pressing need is the strengthening of current disease control efforts to bring down current disease rates and manage short-term climate risks, which will, in turn, increase resilience to long-term climate change. The WHO and partner agencies are working through a range of programmes to (i) ensure political support and financial investment in preventive and curative interventions to bring down current disease burdens; (ii) promote a comprehensive approach to climate risk management; (iii) support applied research, through definition of global and regional research agendas, and targeted research initiatives on priority diseases and population groups.


2015 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuela Arbune ◽  
Michaela Dobre

AbstractChanging vector habitats due to climate change increase the risk of less common vector-borne diseases spreading to temperate areas. An example of such a disease is dirofilariasis. The present article is a case presentation of ocular dirofilariasis. The peculiarities of this case and its implications to public health are presented herein, in addition to a literature review of the epidemiological data regarding dirofilariasis in dogs and humans. A16-year-old adolescent, who had never travelled outside Galaţi County, was admitted to the hospital’s pediatric department with conjunctival edema, foreign body perception, redness and local pain in the left eye. A parasitological exam identified Dirofilaria repens. The outcome of the condition was favorable. Although canine dirofilariasis is more often encountered by veterinary practices, only few human cases had hither to been reported in Romania, none in Galaţi County. A national Romanian prevalence study on dirofilariasis in animals is called for in order to improve the management of the disease, both in veterinary and human medicine.


2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 192-194
Author(s):  
John (Luke) Lucas

The author considers the threat to vector-borne diseases in the light of climate change.


Author(s):  
Balasubramani Karuppusamy ◽  
Devojit Kumar Sarma ◽  
Pachuau Lalmalsawma ◽  
Lalfakzuala Pautu ◽  
Krishanpal Karmodiya ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Ekwebene OC ◽  
◽  
Obidile VC ◽  
Nnamani CP ◽  
Eleje GU ◽  
...  

The effect of global change on the incidence of vector borne diseases including malaria is of great importance. Malaria has been regarded as one of the most sensitive disease that responds fast to climate change. Pregnant women tend to have reduced immunity are more vulnerable to vector borne diseases such as malaria especially with climate change like flooding where these vectors borne diseases are endemic. To measure malaria parasitaemia in gravid women pre and post flooding and also to determine the relationship between malaria and seasonal flooding in South east Nigeria. This was a hospital-based cross-sectional study involving pregnant women aged 15- 45 years attending the antenatal clinics of two maternity centres in a rural community South east Nigeria. Malaria was determined using the thick and thick blood films. Plasmodium falciparum species was examined in this study. Chi-square was used to assess the relationship between malaria and seasonal flooding. One Hundred and fifty pregnant women were recruited for the study. The prevalence of malaria in the gravid women pre and post flooding were 60.00% and 65.30% respectively. Malaria parasite was highest in the gravid women aged 28-31 years and the primigravids. There was no statistical difference between malaria and parity. The mean parasite density in the gravid women was significantly higher post flooding than pre flooding with p-value of 0.001. There was no significant relationship between malaria parasite in gravid women and the periods of investigation. The prevalence of malaria parasite among gravid women in the study area is high regardless of the seasonal flooding. Hence, the need for adherence to malaria prophylaxis protocol by the health care professionals and increase on community health education on malaria preventive strategies.


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