Pan American Health Organization's Regional Strategic Framework for addressing neglected diseases in neglected populations in Latin America and the Caribbean

Ault, Steven K.

doi:10.1590/s0074-02762007005000094

Cited by 30 publications

(28 citation statements)

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“…The collective burden of the common helminth diseases rivals that of the main high-mortality conditions such as HIV/AIDS or malaria; 85% of the NTD burden for the poorest 500 million people living in SSA results from helminth infections. Of the 580 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean, 241 million live in areas where at least one of the NTDs is endemic [5], [6]. Since the remit of the series of these review papers is centered on the issues of identifying research priorities for the improvement of helminth control programmes, the infections described below are ordered not in terms of their abundance but in terms of their history of intervention, with the OCP in West Africa (1975–2002) being the first large-scale programme to have been implemented (originally based on vector control).…”

Section: Human Helminthiases Populations At Risk and Resulting Disementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Latin America, onchocerciasis has been endemic in six countries (namely, Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, and Brazil), with 13 focal areas originally described, and 510,000 individuals estimated to have been at risk of infection [7]. However, in eight of these focal areas, there is encouraging evidence of interruption of transmission after the implementation of the regional strategy adopted by the OEPA [5], [6]. Notably, most of these foci are small and circumscribed, with probably not much genetic diversity in the parasite population at any single focus, some (though not all) of the blackfly vectors are less efficient than their African counterparts, and treatment with ivermectin has been more frequent (biannually instead of yearly, and in some localities up to four times per year) and has achieved a high coverage [8].…”

Section: Human Helminthiases Populations At Risk and Resulting Disementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Latin America and the Caribbean, STHs are present in all countries with an estimated 26.3 million school-age children at risk of infection. In 13 of the 14 countries in this region, many areas have an infection prevalence higher than 20% [5], [6], [17]. Globally, approximately 300 million people suffer from severe morbidity that results in 10,000–135,000 deaths annually.…”

Section: Human Helminthiases Populations At Risk and Resulting Disementioning

confidence: 99%

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A Research Agenda for Helminth Diseases of Humans: The Problem of Helminthiases

et al. 2012

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A disproportionate burden of helminthiases in human populations occurs in marginalised, low-income, and resource-constrained regions of the world, with over 1 billion people in developing areas of sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and the Americas infected with one or more helminth species. The morbidity caused by such infections imposes a substantial burden of disease, contributing to a vicious circle of infection, poverty, decreased productivity, and inadequate socioeconomic development. Furthermore, helminth infection accentuates the morbidity of malaria and HIV/AIDS, and impairs vaccine efficacy. Polyparasitism is the norm in these populations, and infections tend to be persistent. Hence, there is a great need to reduce morbidity caused by helminth infections. However, major deficiencies exist in diagnostics and interventions, including vector control, drugs, and vaccines. Overcoming these deficiencies is hampered by major gaps in knowledge of helminth biology and transmission dynamics, platforms from which to help develop such tools. The Disease Reference Group on Helminths Infections (DRG4), established in 2009 by the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR), was given the mandate to review helminthiases research and identify research priorities and gaps. In this review, we provide an overview of the forces driving the persistence of helminthiases as a public health problem despite the many control initiatives that have been put in place; identify the main obstacles that impede progress towards their control and elimination; and discuss recent advances, opportunities, and challenges for the understanding of the biology, epidemiology, and control of these infections. The helminth infections that will be discussed include: onchocerciasis, lymphatic filariasis, soil-transmitted helminthiases, schistosomiasis, food-borne trematodiases, and taeniasis/cysticercosis.

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Section: Human Helminthiases Populations At Risk and Resulting Disementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Human Helminthiases Populations At Risk and Resulting Disementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Human Helminthiases Populations At Risk and Resulting Disementioning

confidence: 99%

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A Research Agenda for Helminth Diseases of Humans: The Problem of Helminthiases

et al. 2012

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“…The NIDs, a diverse group of more than 20 CDs, are clearly related to poverty, especially for those living in the poorest rural areas and in deprived urban or peri-urban communities with unsafe water, poor sanitation and the proliferation of rodent animal reservoirs and vectors 40 . Based on their prevalence and healthy life-years lost from disability, hookworm infection, other soil-transmitted helminth infections and Chagas disease are the most important NIDs in the region 41 .…”

Section: Demographic and Health Situationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Epidemiology in Latin America and the Caribbean: current situation and challenges

Barreto

Miranda

Figueroa

et al. 2012

International Journal of Epidemiology

162

147

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Background This article analyses the epidemiological research developments in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). It integrates the series commissioned by the International Epidemiological Association to all WHO Regions to identify global opportunities to promote the development of epidemiology. Methods Health situations of the regions were analysed based on published data on selected mortality, morbidity and risk factors. Epidemiological publication output by country was estimated by Medline bibliometrics. Internet and literature searches and data provided by key informants were used to describe perspectives on epidemiological training, research and funding. Findings Despite important advances in recent decades, LAC remains the world's most unequal region. In 2010, 10% of the LAC's people still lived in conditions of multidimensional poverty, with huge variation among countries. The region has experienced fast and complex epidemiological changes in past decades, combining increasing rates of non-communicable diseases and injuries, and keeping uncontrolled many existing endemic and emerging diseases. Overall, epidemiological publications per year increased from 160 articles between 1961 and 1970 to 2492 between 2001 and 2010. The increase in papers per million inhabitants in the past three decades varied from 57% in Panama to 1339% in Paraguay. Universities are the main epidemiological training providers. There are at least 34 universities and other institutions in the region that offer postgraduate programmes at the master’s and doctoral levels in epidemiology or public health. Most LAC countries rely largely on external funding and donors to initiate and sustain long-term research efforts. Despite the limited resources, the critical mass of LAC researchers has produced significant scientific contributions. Future needs The health research panorama of the region shows enormous regional discrepancies, but great prospects. Improving research and human resources capacity in the region will require establishing research partnerships within and outside the region, between rich and poor countries, promoting collaborations between LAC research institutions and universities to boost postgraduate programmes and aligning research investments and outputs with the current burden of disease.

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“…There are an estimated 127 million people living below the poverty line in urban and peri-urban communities in Latin America (Ault, 2007) and sub-standard housing conditions within these urban settings have facilitated the domiciliation of triatomines (Gürtler, 2009; Levy et al, 2006; Medrano-Mercado et al, 2008). A 2013 review of qualitative research on socio-cultural aspects of Chagas disease found that changes in land use may both drive human migration and provide new homes for the vector (Ventura-Garcia et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A global systematic review of Chagas disease prevalence among migrants

et al. 2016

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Human migration has been identified as a potential factor for increased Chagas disease risk and has transformed the disease from a Latin American problem to a global one. We conducted a systematic review of the scientific literature between 2004–2014 in order to: summarize current seroprevalence estimates of Chagas disease among Latin American migrants, in both endemic and non-endemic settings; compare seroprevalence estimates in migrants to countrywide prevalence estimates; and identify risk factors for Chagas disease among migrants. A total of 320 studies were screened and 23 studies were included. We found evidence that the prevalence of Chagas disease is higher than expected in some migrant groups and that reliance on blood donor screening prevalence underestimates the burden of disease. Overall there is a dearth of high quality epidemiologic studies on the prevalence of Chagas in migrants, especially among intra-regional migrants within Latin America. Given that the disease cannot likely be eradicated, improved surveillance and reporting is vital to continuing control efforts. More accurate health surveillance of both Latin American migrants and the Chagas disease burden will help countries appropriately scale up their response to this chronic disease. Overall, improved estimates of Chagas disease among migrants would likely serve to highlight the real need for better screening, diagnostics, and treatment of individuals living with the disease.

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Pan American Health Organization's Regional Strategic Framework for addressing neglected diseases in neglected populations in Latin America and the Caribbean

Abstract: The neglected diseases (NDs)

Cited by 30 publications

References 0 publications

A Research Agenda for Helminth Diseases of Humans: The Problem of Helminthiases

A Research Agenda for Helminth Diseases of Humans: The Problem of Helminthiases

Epidemiology in Latin America and the Caribbean: current situation and challenges

A global systematic review of Chagas disease prevalence among migrants

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