Spatio-temporal Associations Between Deforestation and Malaria Incidence in Lao PDR

Overview

Journal Elife

Specialty Biology

Date 2021 Mar 9

PMID 33686939

Citations 10

Authors

Francois Rerolle

Emily Dantzer

Andrew A Lover

John M Marshall

Bouasy Hongvanthong

Hugh Jw Sturrock

Adam Bennett

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

As countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) increasingly focus their malaria control and elimination efforts on reducing forest-related transmission, greater understanding of the relationship between deforestation and malaria incidence will be essential for programs to assess and meet their 2030 elimination goals. Leveraging village-level health facility surveillance data and forest cover data in a spatio-temporal modeling framework, we found evidence that deforestation is associated with short-term increases, but long-term decreases confirmed malaria case incidence in Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). We identified strong associations with deforestation measured within 30 km of villages but not with deforestation in the near (10 km) and immediate (1 km) vicinity. Results appear driven by deforestation in densely forested areas and were more pronounced for infections with () than for (). These findings highlight the influence of forest activities on malaria transmission in the GMS.

Citing Articles

Forest-Going as a Risk Factor for Confirmed Malaria in Champasak Province, Lao PDR: A Case-Control Study.

Gallalee S, Dantzer E, Rerolle F, Chindavongsa K, Phongluxa K, Lasichanh W Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2025; 21(12.

PMID: 39767465 PMC: 11675269. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph21121624.

Genomic epidemiology demonstrates spatially clustered, local transmission of Plasmodium falciparum in forest-going populations in southern Lao PDR.

Chen Y, Vickers E, Aranda-Diaz A, Murphy M, Gerlovina I, Rerolle F PLoS Pathog. 2024; 20(9):e1012194.

PMID: 39312594 PMC: 11449315. DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012194.

Assessing receptivity to malaria using case surveillance and forest data in a near-elimination setting in northeast Thailand.

Walshe R, Pongsoipetch K, Mukem S, Kamsri T, Singkham N, Sudathip P Malar J. 2024; 23(1):224.

PMID: 39080748 PMC: 11290226. DOI: 10.1186/s12936-024-05044-4.

Mapping malaria transmission foci in Northeast Thailand from 2011 to 2021: approaching elimination in a hypoendemic area.

Pongsoipetch K, Walshe R, Mukem S, Kamsri T, Singkham N, Sudathip P Malar J. 2024; 23(1):212.

PMID: 39020432 PMC: 11253324. DOI: 10.1186/s12936-024-05026-6.

Fine-scale maps of malaria incidence to inform risk stratification in Laos.

Kang S, Amratia P, Dunn J, Vilay P, Connell M, Symons T Malar J. 2024; 23(1):196.

PMID: 38918779 PMC: 11202256. DOI: 10.1186/s12936-024-05007-9.

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