Climate Change and the Transmission of Vector-Borne Diseases: A Review

Abstract

This article reviews studies examining the relationship between climate variability and the transmission of vector- and rodent-borne diseases, including malaria, dengue fever, Ross River virus infection, and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome. The review has evaluated their study designs, statistical analysis methods, usage of meteorological variables, and results of those studies. The authors found that the limitations of analytical methods exist in most of the articles. Besides climatic variables, few of them have included other factors that can affect the transmission of vector-borne disease (eg, socioeconomic status). In addition, the quantitative relationship between climate and vector-borne diseases is inconsistent. Further research should be conducted among different populations with various climatic/ecological regions by using appropriate statistical models.