An individual-based model of hepatitis A transmission

Authored by Marco Ajelli, Stefano Merler

Date Published: 2009

DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2009.03.038

Sponsors: European Union

Platforms: No platforms listed

Model Documentation: Other Narrative Flow charts Pseudocode Mathematical description

Model Code URLs: Model code not found

Abstract

Viral hepatitis A, as other endemic diseases, represents a public health priority worldwide. To study long-time scale human pathogens through individual-based simulations, the development of a dynamic network of contacts is required. In this work, we introduce an individual-based model accounting for the birth and death of the individuals, the generation of new households, and the educational career of the individuals, in order to investigate viral hepatitis A dynamics in the most affected Italian areas. Intervention options such as targeted vaccination, social distancing measures (e. g., closure of day care centers and kindergartens) and improvements in standards of living and hygiene are evaluated. Results show that a very low vaccination coverage is sufficient to control hepatitis A in Italy, while its elimination is not possible since new cases are continuously imported from high endemicity areas outside the country. Finally, the considered social distancing measures can be counter productive since the fraction of recovered individuals does not decline while the age at infection increases, thus augmenting the probability of developing acute symptoms. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tags

Infections disease Vaccination immunization Pandemic influenza Strategies Virus Survival Seroprevalence Nationwide