Abstract

The World Health Organization recently launched its 2021-2030 roadmap, Ending the Neglect to Attain the Sustainable Development Goals, an updated call to arms to end the suffering caused by neglected tropical diseases. Modelling and quantitative analyses played a significant role in forming these latest goals. In this collection, we discuss the insights, the resulting recommendations and identified challenges of public health modelling for 13 of the target diseases: Chagas disease, dengue, gambiense human African trypanosomiasis (gHAT), lymphatic filariasis (LF), onchocerciasis, rabies, scabies, schistosomiasis, soil-transmitted helminthiases (STH), Taenia solium taeniasis/ cysticercosis, trachoma, visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and yaws. This piece reflects the three cross-cutting themes identified across the collection, regarding the contribution that modelling can make to timelines, programme design, drug development and clinical trials.

Highlights

  • Reviewer Status AWAITING PEER REVIEW Any reports and responses or comments on the article can be found at the end of the article

  • Taenia solium taeniasis/ cysticercosis, trachoma, visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and yaws. This piece reflects the three cross-cutting themes identified across the collection, regarding the contribution that modelling can make to timelines, programme design, drug development and clinical trials

  • A renewed roadmap for a new decade The World Health Organization’s (WHO) 2021-2030 Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) Roadmap was launched on January 28th, 2021, renewing the commitment of the global NTD community to end the suffering caused by these diseases[1]

Read more

Summary

Conclusion

The increased use of mathematical and statistical modelling over the last decade has helped move the field of NTDs into a more quantitative space, providing the link between epidemiological concepts and observed reality. For modelling to continue to fill this role and influence decision-making, ongoing conversations and engagement between all parties will be paramount. These will, in turn, overcome the continuous challenges of data quality and access, and the consequent model assumptions required. As programme and disease management move towards a country-ownership framework under the new roadmap, it will be key that modelling follows suit, overcoming systematic notions of knowledge ownership and challenging associated power dynamics[110–112]. In this way, future modelling will work to support this new NTD landscape.

World Health Organization
NTD Modelling Consortium Visceral Leishmaniasis Group
NTD Modelling Consortium discussion group on soil-transmitted helminthes
13. NTD Modelling Consortium Onchocerciasis Group
15. World Health Organization Rabies Modelling Consortium
16. World Health Organization
19. Uniting to Combat NTDs
36. World Health Organization: Guideline
40. Hollingsworth TD

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.