Infectious Disease Control
“Our ambition is to do research that has a tangible influence on infectious disease control policy and practice”
Main research activities concern the understanding and prediction of the spread and control of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), including various species of parasitic worm infections, visceral leishmaniasis, and leprosy. Tuberculosis, HIV/Aids, and other sexually transmitted infections are also important topics of research. We further study infectious diseases common among the diverse population of Rotterdam, as well as hand hygiene in healthcare settings and antimicrobial resistance. As of 2020, we conduct research on COVID-19, particularly the geographical aspects of its control. Our research methodologies include mathematical modelling, epidemiological data analysis, and behavioral studies. Most NTD research is part of- or linked to the NTD Modelling Consortium, a collaboration of various international modelling teams, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Highlights
of Infectious Disease Control in 2020
HIV transmission in sub-Saharan Africa
In a recent project, we investigated geospatial variation in HIV prevalence across Southern and Eastern Africa, demonstrating high levels of variation. For young adults, who have most likely been recently infected, the observed pattern of geographical clustering suggests strong local differences in HIV transmission (see Figure below). Through geospatial epidemiological analyses using local-level HIV data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), we also found that these pockets of high HIV transmission were mostly located near areas with high levels of economic activity, such as ports, border crossings, and mining areas. Our findings indicate that key population dynamics, especially related to seasonal and economic migration, and associated sex work, play a major role in fuelling HIV transmission.
Neglected tropical disease programmes due to COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused substantial disruptions to ongoing programmes to control and eliminate neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). We worked with our partners of the NTD Modelling Consortium to assess the immediate and long-term effects of such disruptions, and to evaluate mitigation strategies. Our timely results were effectively disseminated to policy makers, national programme managers, implementers, donors and other stakeholders through WHO webinars, resulting in active engagement of modellers in further policy discussions. Detailed results were documented in a special issue of Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. The modelling analyses showed that the impact of disruptions is greatest for diseases with relatively fast epidemic growth rates, such as schistosomiasis and visceral leishmaniasis (VL). For other NTDs, the delay in reaching WHO-targets is similar to the duration of interruption of control. Effective mitigation strategies include active case detection (for VL) and more frequent mass drug administration (for parasitic worms).
Figure 1: Mass drug administration for parasitic worm infections during the COVID-19 pandemic.
