Spatio-temporal distribution of vector borne diseases in Australia and Papua New Guinea vis-à-vis climatic factors.

Background & Objectives: Weather and climate are directly linked to human health including the distribution and occurrence of vector-borne diseases which are of significant concern for public health.

Methods: In this review, studies on spatiotemporal distribution of dengue, Barmah Forest Virus (BFV) and Ross River Virus (RRV) in Australia and malaria in Papua New Guinea (PNG) under the influence of climate change and/ or human society conducted in the past two decades were analysed and summarised. Environmental factors such as temperature, rainfall, relative humidity and tides were the main contributors from climate.

Time trend of malaria in relation to climate variability in Papua New Guinea.

Objectives: This study was conducted to describe the regional malaria incidence in relation to the geographic and climatic conditions and describe the effect of altitude on the expansion of malaria over the last decade in Papua New Guinea.

Methods: Malaria incidence was estimated in five provinces from 1996 to 2008 using national health surveillance data. Time trend of malaria incidence was compared with rainfall and minimum/maximum temperature.

Effect of Climate Factors on the Childhood Pneumonia in Papua New Guinea: A Time-Series Analysis.

This study aimed to assess the association between climate factors and the incidence of childhood pneumonia in Papua New Guinea quantitatively and to evaluate the variability of the effect size according to their geographic properties. The pneumonia incidence in children under five-year and meteorological factors were obtained from six areas, including monthly rainfall and the monthly average daily maximum temperatures during the period from 1997 to 2006 from national health surveillance data. A generalized linear model was applied to measure the effect size of local and regional climate factor.