The Network Challenge (Chapter 27): Global Diseases: The Role of Networks in the Spread (and Preventions) of Infection

The Network Challenge (Chapter 27): Global Diseases: The Role of Networks in the Spread (and Preventions) of Infection
ISBN-10
0137015585
ISBN-13
9780137015580
Category
Business & Economics
Pages
28
Language
English
Published
2009-05-19
Publisher
Pearson Education
Authors
J. Shin Teh, Harvey Rubin

Description

Infectious diseases are complex, interdependent events that can be described as networks over enormous scales of time and distance from the molecular to the societal, from the local microenvironment to the global stage. In this chapter, Teh and Rubin argue that meeting this challenge effectively requires a solution that engages networks. This network-based perspective must inform not only the development and distribution of drugs and vaccines for infectious diseases, but also the development of strategies of primary prevention that use the knowledge of such networks to disrupt and limit disease spread. In this review, they analyze infectious diseases in the context of the networks underlying the evolution, establishment, and propagation of disease. They also review the network-based analyses for modeling disease spread and allowing a better understanding of the counter-interventions needed. Finally, they outline the future challenges in this area and propose a collaborative international solution based on a “global compact” that will allow effective diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of infectious diseases.

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