Spatial variation in housing construction material in low- and middle-income countries: A Bayesian spatial prediction model of a key infectious diseases risk factor and social determinant of health.

Housing infrastructure and quality is a major determinant of infectious disease risk and other health outcomes in regions where vector borne, waterborne and neglected tropical diseases are endemic. It is important to quantify the geographical distribution of improvements to dwelling components to identify and target resources towards populations at risk. This study aimed to model the sub-national spatial variation in housing materials using covariates with quasi-global coverage and use the resulting estimates to map predicted coverage across the world's low- and middle-income countries.