Dataset Information

Spatial spread of malaria and economic frontier expansion in the Brazilian Amazon.

ABSTRACT: The temporal and spatial evolution of malaria was described for the postfrontier phase of the Brazilian Amazon in 2003-2013. The current ecological study aimed to understand the relationship between spatial population mobility and the distribution of malaria cases. The study identified epidemiologically relevant areas using regional statistical modeling and spatial analyses that considered differential infections and types of work activities. Annual parasite incidence (API) in the region was highest in hotspots along the Amazon River and in the south and west settlement zone of Hiléia, with concentrations in environmental protection areas and açaí and Brazil nut extraction areas. The dispersal force decreased in the Central Amazon due to rapid urbanization and improved socioeconomic conditions for workers in consolidated settlement areas. The study characterized the spatial patterns of disease transmission according to the economic activity and regionalization of geographic areas, confirming that the incidence of infection by work activity and labor flow is linked to extractive activities and agricultural settlements.

SUBMITTER: Souza PF

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6581252 | biostudies-other | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Spatial spread of malaria and economic frontier expansion in the Brazilian Amazon.

Souza Patrícia Feitosa PF Xavier Diego Ricardo DR Suarez Mutis Martha Cecilia MC da Mota Jurema Corrêa JC Peiter Paulo Cesar PC de Matos Vanderlei Pascoal VP Magalhães Mônica de Avelar Figueiredo Mafra MAFM Barcellos Christovam C

PloS one 20190618 6

The temporal and spatial evolution of malaria was described for the postfrontier phase of the Brazilian Amazon in 2003-2013. The current ecological study aimed to understand the relationship between spatial population mobility and the distribution of malaria cases. The study identified epidemiologically relevant areas using regional statistical modeling and spatial analyses that considered differential infections and types of work activities. Annual parasite incidence (API) in the region was hig ...[more]

PMID: 31211772

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Project description:BackgroundLarge-scale forest conservation projects are underway in the Brazilian Amazon but little is known regarding their public health impact. Current literature emphasizes how land clearing increases malaria incidence, leading to the conclusion that forest conservation decreases malaria burden. Yet, there is also evidence that proximity to forest fringes increases malaria incidence, which implies the opposite relationship between forest conservation and malaria. We compare the effect of these environmental factors on malaria and explore its implications.Methods and findingsUsing a large malaria dataset (~1,300,000 positive malaria tests collected over ~4.5 million km(2)), satellite imagery, permutation tests, and hierarchical Bayesian regressions, we show that greater forest cover (as a proxy for proximity to forest fringes) tends to be associated with higher malaria incidence, and that forest cover effect was 25 times greater than the land clearing effect, the often cited culprit of malaria in the region. These findings have important implications for land use/land cover (LULC) policies in the region. We find that cities close to protected areas (PA's) tend to have higher malaria incidence than cities far from PA's. Using future LULC scenarios, we show that avoiding 10% of deforestation through better governance might result in an average 2-fold increase in malaria incidence by 2050 in urban health posts.ConclusionsOur results suggest that cost analysis of reduced carbon emissions from conservation efforts in the region should account for increased malaria morbidity, and that conservation initiatives should consider adopting malaria mitigation strategies. Coordinated actions from disparate science fields, government ministries, and global initiatives (e.g., Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation; Millenium Development Goals; Roll Back Malaria; and Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria), will be required to decrease malaria toll in the region while preserving these important ecosystems.

Project description:BACKGROUND:There is a growing body of evidence linking micronutrient deficiencies and malaria incidence arising mostly from P. falciparum endemic areas. We assessed the impact of micronutrient deficiencies on malaria incidence and vice versa in the Brazilian state of Amazonas. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:We evaluated children <10 years old living in rural communities in the state of Amazonas, Brazil, from May 2010 to May 2011. All children were assessed for sociodemographic, anthropometric and laboratory parameters, including vitamin A, beta-carotene, zinc and iron serum levels at the beginning of the study (May 2010) and one year later (May 2011). Children were followed in between using passive surveillance for detection of symptomatic malaria. Those living in the study area at the completion of the observation period were reassessed for micronutrient levels. Univariate Cox-proportional Hazards models were used to assess whether micronutrient deficiencies had an impact on time to first P. vivax malaria episode. We included 95 children median age 4.8 years (interquartile range [IQR]: 2.3-6.6), mostly males (60.0%) and with high maternal illiteracy (72.6%). Vitamin A deficiencies were found in 36% of children, beta-carotene deficiency in 63%, zinc deficiency in 61% and iron deficiency in 51%. Most children (80%) had at least one intestinal parasite. During follow-up, 16 cases of vivax malaria were diagnosed amongst 13 individuals. Micronutrient deficiencies were not associated with increased malaria incidence: vitamin A deficiency [Hazard ratio (HR): 1.51; P-value: 0.45]; beta-carotene [HR: 0.47; P-value: 0.19]; zinc [HR: 1.41; P-value: 0.57] and iron [HR: 2.31; P-value: 0.16]). Upon reevaluation, children with al least one episode of malaria did not present significant changes in micronutrient levels. CONCLUSION:Micronutrient serum levels were not associated with a higher malaria incidence nor the malaria episode influenced micronutrient levels. Future studies targeting larger populations to assess micronutrients levels in P. vivax endemic areas are warranted in order to validate these results.

Project description:BACKGROUND: Economic development is often evoked as a driving force that has the capacity to improve the social and health conditions of remote areas. However, development projects produce uneven impacts on local communities, according to their different positions within society. This study examines the spatial distribution of three major health threats in the Brazilian Amazon region that may undergo changes through highway construction. Homicide mortality, AIDS incidence and malaria prevalence rates were calculated for 70 municipalities located within the areas of influence of the Cuiabá-Santarém highway (BR-163), i.e. in the western part of the state of Pará state and the northern part of Mato Grosso. RESULTS: The municipalities were characterized using social and economic indicators such as gross domestic product (GDP), urban and indigenous populations, and recent migration. The municipalities' connections to the region's main transportation routes (BR-163 and Trans-Amazonian highways, along with the Amazon and Tapajós rivers) were identified by tagging the municipalities that have boundaries crossing these routes, using GIS overlay operations. Multiple regression was used to identify the major driving forces and constraints relating to the distribution of health threats. The main explanatory variables for higher malaria prevalence were: proximity to the Trans-Amazonian highway, high proportion of indigenous population and low proportion of migrants. High homicide rates were associated with high proportions of migrants, while connection to the Amazon River played a protective role. AIDS incidence was higher in municipalities with recent increases in GDP and high proportions of urban population. CONCLUSIONS: Highways induce social and environmental changes and play different roles in spreading and maintaining diseases and health threats. The most remote areas are still protected against violence but are vulnerable to malaria. Rapid economic and demographic growth increases the risk of AIDS transmission and violence. Highways connect secluded localities and may threaten local populations. This region has been undergoing rapid localized development booms, thus creating outposts of rapid and temporary migration, which may introduce health risks to remote areas.

Dataset Information

Spatial spread of malaria and economic frontier expansion in the Brazilian Amazon.

Publications

Spatial spread of malaria and economic frontier expansion in the Brazilian Amazon.

Similar Datasets

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