Presentation
Spatial dynamics of vector-borne disease risk in Costa Rica: Examining the role of anthropogenic landscapes, indigenous territories, and protected areas in a biodiversity hotspot
American Geophysical Union Annual Conference
(2019)
Abstract
In the neotropics, agricultural intensification has resulted in large-scale changes to forest ecosystems. Such anthropogenic landscapes can significantly impact the transmission dynamics of vector-borne diseases (VBD), resulting in new or altered focal points of risk. Conservation of forest ecosystems, which provide the service of infectious disease regulation, may decrease VBD risk by maintaining insect vector populations in a state of relative equilibrium. Globally, indigenous lands have been found to play a vital role in maintaining the ecosystem integrity of conservation areas and ecologically intact landscapes. We sought to better understand the associations between anthropogenic landscapes, indigenous territories, forest conservation, and risk of of VBD. Specifically, we quantified spatial dynamics of risk across three distinct categories of VBD in Costa Rica, including: 1) emerging flaviviruses (Zika virus disease and Dengue fever), 2) neglected tropical diseases (cutaneous leishmaniasis and Chagas disease), and 3) a nearing eradicated disease (malaria). District-level incidence data was collected between 2006-2017 and spatial statistics were used to identify hotspots of elevated risk. We then quantified the associations between types of human-altered land use (e.g. deforestation rates and agricultural land use) and both the presence (i.e. hotspot or not) and persistence (i.e. number of years as a hotspot) of elevated transmission risk over time. We detected clear patterns of non-random disease risk across each of the three categories of VBD, with Zika and Dengue exhibiting the most spatial overlap in the Caribbean and North Pacific regions. Compared to protected areas, districts with higher proportions of human-altered landscapes, as measured by deforestation and agriculture, were generally at higher risk for VBD. Results from this analysis may be used to better inform targeted disease prevention and mitigation programs.
Disciplines
Publication Date
December, 2019
Location
San Francisco, CA
Comments
Poster Presentation
Citation Information
Brett R. Bayles, Maria Alvarez Pineda, Keira Dagy, Emma Kelly, et al.. "Spatial dynamics of vector-borne disease risk in Costa Rica: Examining the role of anthropogenic landscapes, indigenous territories, and protected areas in a biodiversity hotspot" American Geophysical Union Annual Conference (2019) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/brett-bayles/21/