Comparing Contributions of Passive and Active Tick Collection Methods to Determine Establishment of Ticks of Public Health Concern Within Illinois.

In Illinois, between 1990 and 2017, tick-borne diseases in humans increased 10-fold, yet we have insufficient information on when and where people are exposed to vector ticks (Ixodida: Ixodidae). The aims of our research were to compare contributions of passive and active tick collection methods in determining establishment of ticks of public health concern and obtain information on tick distributions within Illinois. We used three surveillance strategies within the Illinois Tick Inventory Collaboration Network to gather information about the ticks of public health concern: 1) passive collection (voluntary submission by the public); 2) systematic collection (biweekly active surveillance); and 3) special collections (active collections in locations of special interest).

Effects of Scale on Modeling West Nile Virus Disease Risk.

Modeling vector-borne diseases is best conducted when heterogeneity among interacting biotic and abiotic processes is captured. However, the successful integration of these complex processes is difficult, hindered by a lack of understanding of how these relationships influence disease transmission across varying scales. West Nile virus (WNV) is the most important mosquito-borne disease in the United States.

Examining the Relationship Between Low Birth Weight Occurrence and Passive Measures of Environmental Arsenic by Census Tract in Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties, Florida.

Arsenic is a public health concern because of its widespread distribution and high toxicity, even when doses are small. Low birth weight (LBW) occurrence, birth weights less than 2500 g, may be associated with prenatal exposure of arsenic from environmental factors and consuming contaminated drinking water and food. The objective of this study was to examine whether mothers living in areas of Escambia and Santa Rosa counties with varying levels of background arsenic in surface soil and water were associated with the occurrence of LBW.

Erratum: Florida Arsenic Distribution Index: Quantifying the Distribution of Past and Present Arsenic Usage.

The authors wish to add the following correction to their paper published in IJERPH [...

Impact of Unexplored Data Sources on the Historical Distribution of Three Vector Tick Species in Illinois.

We updated the Illinois historical (1905-December 2017) distribution and status (not reported, reported or established) maps for Amblyomma americanum (L.) (Acari: Ixodidae), Dermacentor variabilis (Say) (Acari: Ixodidae), and Ixodes scapularis (Say) (Acari: Ixodidae) by compiling publicly available, previously unexplored or newly identified published and unpublished data (untapped data). Primary data sources offered specific tick-level information, followed by secondary and tertiary data sources.

Florida Arsenic Distribution Index: Quantifying the Distribution of Past and Present Arsenic Usage.

Arsenic is an abundant, highly toxic element that is a global health concern due to damage from acute and chronic exposure and the potential for high local concentrations in heavily populated areas. In Florida, arsenic has been used heavily in agricultural, commercial, and industrial applications for decades. While studies have identified and quantified the contributions of arsenic to the state, there are fewer studies that have attempted to index to identify spatial distribution patterns.

Standardized Operational Evaluations of Catch Basin Larvicides from Seven Mosquito Control Programs in the Midwestern United States During 2017.

During June to September 2017, 7 mosquito control programs in the midwestern United States evaluated a total of 9 catch basin larvicide formulations using similar protocols. Treated basins were monitored among study sites to observe when larvicides failed to control mosquitoes in 25% or more basins within a site. Overall, when monitoring occurred within the maximum label duration of the larvicides, sites treated with a single larvicide tablet or briquet surpassed the 25% fail threshold more often than pellet and granular larvicide formulations.

Application of GIS in public health in India: A literature-based review, analysis, and recommendations.

The implementation of geospatial technologies and methods for improving health has become widespread in many nations, but India's adoption of these approaches has been fairly slow. With a large population, ongoing public health challenges, and a growing economy with an emphasis on innovative technologies, the adoption of spatial approaches to disease surveillance, spatial epidemiology, and implementation of health policies in India has great potential for both success and efficacy. Through our evaluation of scientific papers selected through a structured key phrase review of the National Center for Biotechnology Information on the database PubMed, we found that current spatial approaches to health research in India are fairly descriptive in nature, but the use of more complex models and statistics is increasing.

Observed loss and ineffectiveness of mosquito larvicides applied to catch basins in the northern suburbs of chicago IL, 2014.

In the northeastern part of the greater Chicago metropolitan area, the North Shore Mosquito Abatement District (NSMAD) treats approximately 50,000 catch basins each season with larvicide tablets as part of its effort to reduce local populations of the West Nile virus (WNV) vector Culex pipiens. During the 2014 season, an NSMAD technician monitored a subset of 60-195 basins weekly for 18 weeks among the communities of the District for the presence of mosquitoes. Monitoring found no clear evidence in the reduction of mosquitoes with the use of larvicides, and visual inspections of 211 larvicide-treated basins found that the majority (162, 76.

Identification of larvicide-resistant catch basins from three years of larvicide trials in a suburb of chicago, IL.

The tens of thousands of catch basins found in many urban areas are a primary target of local vector control agencies for seasonal application of extended-release larvicides. A concern with using larvicides in these structures is that active ingredients can be hampered by high flows, debris, and sediment, all of which are common to these structures. As such a certain proportion of basins may be "resistant" to larvicide treatments due to site specific characteristics that may promote these and other factors that hinder larvicide action and/or promote mosquito infestation.

Influence of landscape factors and management decisions on spatial and temporal patterns of the transmission of chronic wasting disease transmission in white-tailed deer.

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) has been reported in white-tailed deer at the border of the US states of Illinois and Wisconsin since 2002. Transmission of infectious prions between animals and from the environment has resulted in spatial and temporal structure observable in the spatio-temporal patterns of reported cases. Case locations of 382 positive cases from 28,954 deer tested between 2002 and 2009 provided insight into the potential risk factors and landscape features associated with transmission using a combination of clustering, generalised linear modelling and descriptive evaluations of a risk map of predicted cases of CWD.