Infectious diseases of severe weather-related and flood-related natural disasters

Ivers, Louise C.; Ryan, Edward T.

doi:10.1097/01.qco.0000244044.85393.9e

Cited by 179 publications

(134 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…The most common health problems reported among flood victims are: trauma caused by lives lost mainly from drowning [19], increased incidence of infectious diseases, especially acute gastrointestinal infections because of faeco-oral cycling from disruption of sewage disposal [10,20] or untreated sewage disposal [17]; vector-borne and rodent-borne infections, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, West Nile fever, Hantavirus and leptospirosis [14,15,19,21]; wound infections or injuries [10,22]; and mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, sleeplessness and post-traumatic stress [18,21,23]. In recent years, several studies have been conducted to review health impacts of flooding worldwide [10], however, most have focused on developing countries [10,11] and on flooding caused after hurricanes or tropical cyclones [12,14,17,18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to the destruction of critical infrastructures, flood-related natural disasters have adverse effects on human health [10][11][12][13][14][15][16], particularly among survivors [17] and displaced persons' health [18]. The most common health problems reported among flood victims are: trauma caused by lives lost mainly from drowning [19], increased incidence of infectious diseases, especially acute gastrointestinal infections because of faeco-oral cycling from disruption of sewage disposal [10,20] or untreated sewage disposal [17]; vector-borne and rodent-borne infections, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, West Nile fever, Hantavirus and leptospirosis [14,15,19,21]; wound infections or injuries [10,22]; and mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, sleeplessness and post-traumatic stress [18,21,23].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Health impacts of the 2005 flood events on feedlot farm families in southern Alberta, Canada

Acharya¹,

Kalischuk²,

Klein³

et al. 2007

WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment, Vol 103

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In the summer of 2005, southern Alberta received heavy rainfall that led to extensive flooding. Four separate flooding events severely affected several rural communities, roads, bridges, and businesses within the region; specifically, the flooding affected farm families living on Canada's largest feedlot operations in the area. This article explores the health-related impacts of the 2005 flood events on families who reside on feedlot farms in southern Alberta. Utilizing random sampling, an in-person survey was conducted between September and December 2005 with 33 affected feedlot farm families living in the Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District, home of the greatest number of large beef feedlot operations in Canada. Three percent of participants (and 12% of their family members) reported flood-related health problems. However, 63% of participants (and 58% of their family members) reported flood-related mental health problems, and 40% (and 24% of family members) indicated that they experienced isolation and helplessness. Only 9% of the participants accessed health services. Most participants reported that their communities were more helpful in dealing with their flood-related health problems than were public and service delivery sectors. A majority (91%) of participants reported that their family was helpful, followed by friends (64%), neighbors (42%), church (39%), and employees (36%). Among the affected feedlot farm families, a small percentage experienced physical health problems but a much larger percentage had mental health problems. However, only a few utilized health care services. This information will be important to health care leaders and policy makers as they plan and develop efficient and effective health care support for farm families exposed to flooding events.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health impacts of the 2005 flood events on feedlot farm families in southern Alberta, Canada

Acharya¹,

Kalischuk²,

Klein³

et al. 2007

WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment, Vol 103

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This case study demonstrated how Red Hook, an urban environment without running water, heat, and electricity, was exposed to potential for disease transmission (e.g., diarrheal disease) and exacerbation of underlying medical conditions (e.g., upper respiratory infections). [50][51][52] …”

Section: Community Participation and Need For Coordinated Responsementioning

confidence: 99%

Lessons from Hurricane Sandy: a Community Response in Brooklyn, New York

et al. 2013

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The frequency and intensity of extreme weather events have increased in recent decades; one example is Hurricane Sandy. If the frequency and severity continue or increase, adaptation and mitigation efforts are needed to protect vulnerable populations and improve daily life under changed weather conditions. This field report examines the devastation due to Hurricane Sandy experienced in Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York, a neighborhood consisting of geographically isolated low-lying commercial and residential units, with a concentration of low-income housing, and disproportionate rates of poverty and poor health outcomes largely experienced by Black and Latino residents. Multiple sources of data were reviewed, including street canvasses, governmental reports, community flyers, and meeting transcripts, as well as firsthand observations by a local nonprofit Red Hook Initiative (RHI) and community members, and social media accounts of the effects of Sandy and the response to daily needs. These data are considered within existing theory, evidence, and practice on protecting public health during extreme weather events. Firsthand observations show that a community-based organization in Red Hook, RHI, was at the center of the response to disaster relief, despite the lack of staff training in response to events such as Hurricane Sandy. Review of these data underscores that adaptation and response to climate change and likely resultant extreme weather is a dynamic process requiring an official coordinated governmental response along with on-the-ground volunteer community responders.

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“…Transforming reports to a semantic online format (W3C Semantic Web) makes it possible to combine emerging infectious disease content with similarly transformed information from other Internet sites such as the Global Disaster Alert Coordinating System (GDACS) website (www.gdacs.org). The broad effects of disasters often increase illness and death from communicable diseases, particularly where resources for healthcare infrastructure have been lacking (28,29). By merging these 2 online media sources (ProMED-mail and GDACS), EpiSPIDER demonstrates how distributed, event-based, unstructured media sources can be integrated to complement situational awareness for disease surveillance.…”

Section: The Epispider Project Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of Unstructured Event-Based Reports for Global Infectious Disease Surveillance

Keller

Blench²,

Tolentino³

et al. 2009

Emerg. Infect. Dis.

177

155

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Free or low-cost sources of unstructured information, such as Internet news and online discussion sites, provide detailed local and near real-time data on disease outbreaks, even in countries that lack traditional public health surveillance. To improve public health surveillance and, ultimately, interventions, we examined 3 primary systems that process event-based outbreak information: Global Public Health Intelligence Network, HealthMap, and EpiSPIDER. Despite similarities among them, these systems are highly complementary because they monitor different data types, rely on varying levels of automation and human analysis, and distribute distinct information. Future development should focus on linking these systems more closely to public health practitioners in the fi eld and establishing collaborative networks for alert verifi cation and dissemination. Such development would further establish event-based monitoring as an invaluable public health resource that provides critical context and an alternative to traditional indicator-based outbreak reporting.

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Infectious diseases of severe weather-related and flood-related natural disasters

Cited by 179 publications

References 66 publications

Health impacts of the 2005 flood events on feedlot farm families in southern Alberta, Canada

Health impacts of the 2005 flood events on feedlot farm families in southern Alberta, Canada

Lessons from Hurricane Sandy: a Community Response in Brooklyn, New York

Use of Unstructured Event-Based Reports for Global Infectious Disease Surveillance

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