Journal of Tropical Medicine Spatial Studies on Vector- Transmitted Diseases and Vectors Guest Editors: Maria Goreti Rosa-Freitas, Nildimar Alves Honório, Cláudia Torres Codeço, Guilherme Loureiro Werneck, and Nicolas Degallier Spatial Studies on Vector-Transmitted Diseases and Vectors Journal of Tropical Medicine Spatial Studies on Vector-Transmitted Diseases and Vectors Guest Editors: Maria Goreti Rosa-Freitas, Nildimar Alves Honorio,´ Claudia´ Torres Codec¸o, Guilherme Loureiro Werneck, and Nicolas Degallier Copyright © 2012 Hindawi Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved. This is a special issue published in “Journal of Tropical Medicine.” All articles are open access articles distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Editorial Board Hans Peter Beck, Switzerland Jean-Paul Gonzalez, France John Henry Ouma, Kenya Sukla Biswas, India Joseph Hamburger, Israel Gerd Pluschke, Switzerland Joe Blaney, USA Lukasz Kedzierski, Australia Sasithon Pukrittayakamee, Thailand Ib Christian Bygbjerg, Denmark Susana A. Laucella, Argentina R. G. Ridley, USA Maureen Coetzee, South Africa Peter Leggat, Australia Georges Snounou, France Carlos E. P. Corbett, Brazil Sylvie Manguin, France Pradya Somboon, Thailand Rodrigo Correa-Oliveira,ˆ Brazil Wilbur Milhous, USA Shyam Sundar, India Luis E. Cuevas, UK Louis H. Miller, USA Marcel Tanner, Switzerland Aditya Prasad Dash, India Mathieu Nacher, French Guiana Thomas R. Unnasch, USA Ibrahim M. Elhassan, Saudi Arabia Christian F. Ockenhouse, USA Dina Vlachou, UK Blaise Genton, Switzerland Kenneth E. Olson, USA Contents Spatial Studies on Vector-Transmitted Diseases and Vectors, Maria Goreti Rosa-Freitas, Nildimar Alves Honorio,´ Claudia´ Torres Codec¸o, Guilherme Loureiro Werneck, and Nicolas Degallier Volume 2012, Article ID 573965, 5 pages Survey of Water Bugs in Bankim, a New Buruli Ulcer Endemic Area in Cameroon, Solange Meyin A. Ebong, Sara Eyangoh, Estelle Marion, Jordi Landier, Laurent Marsollier, Jean-Franc¸ois Guegan,´ and Philippe Legall Volume 2012, Article ID 123843, 8 pages Using a Geographical-Information-System-Based Decision Support to Enhance Malaria Vector Control in Zambia, Emmanuel Chanda, Victor Munyongwe Mukonka, David Mthembu, Mulakwa Kamuliwo, Sarel Coetzer, and Cecilia Jill Shinondo Volume 2012, Article ID 363520, 10 pages A Predictive Spatial Model to Quantify the Risk of Air-Travel-Associated Dengue Importation into the United States and Europe, Lauren M. Gardner, David Fajardo, S. Travis Waller, Ophelia Wang, and Sahotra Sarkar Volume 2012, Article ID 103679, 11 pages Effects of Artificial Flooding for Hydroelectric Development on the Population of Mansonia humeralis (Diptera: Culicidae) in the ParanaRiver,S´ ao˜ Paulo, Brazil,MarciaBicudodePaula, Almerio´ de Castro Gomes, Delsio Natal, Ana Maria Ribeiro de Castro Duarte, and Lu´ıs Filipe Mucci Volume 2012, Article ID 598789, 6 pages Geographic Distribution of Chagas Disease Vectors in Brazil Based on Ecological Niche Modeling, Rodrigo Gurgel-Gonc¸alves, Cleber´ Galva˜ o, Jane Costa, and A. Townsend Peterson Volume 2012, Article ID 705326, 15 pages Species Distribution Models and Ecological Suitability Analysis for Potential Tick Vectors of Lyme Disease in Mexico, Patricia Illoldi-Rangel, Chissa-Louise Rivaldi, Blake Sissel, Rebecca Trout Fryxell, Guadalupe Gordillo-Perez,´ Angel Rodr´ıguez-Moreno, Phillip Williamson, Griselda Montiel-Parra, V´ıctor Sanchez-Cordero,´ and Sahotra Sarkar Volume 2012, Article ID 959101, 10 pages Information System and Geographic Information System Tools in the Data Analyses of the Control Program for Visceral Leishmaniases from 2006 to 2010 in the Sanitary District of Venda Nova, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, Lara Saraiva, Camila Gonc¸alves Leite, Luiz OtavioAlvesdeCarvalho,´ Jose´ Dilermando Andrade Filho, Fernanda Carvalho de Menezes, and Vanessa de Oliveira Pires Fiuza´ Volume 2012, Article ID 254361, 9 pages Distribution and Abundance of Phlebotominae, Vectors of Leishmaniasis, in Argentina: Spatial and Temporal Analysis at Different Scales,Mar´ıa Gabriela Quintana, Mar´ıa Soledad Fernandez,´ and Oscar Daniel Salomon´ Volume 2012, Article ID 652803, 16 pages Use of Indicator Kriging to Investigate Schistosomiasis in Minas Gerais State, Brazil, RicardoJ.P.S.Guimaraes,˜ Corina C. Freitas, Luciano V. Dutra, Carlos A. Felgueiras, Sandra C. Drummond, Sandra H. C. Tibiria,´ Guilherme Oliveira, and Omar S. Carvalho Volume 2012, Article ID 837428, 10 pages Hindawi Publishing Corporation Journal of Tropical Medicine Volume 2012, Article ID 573965, 5 pages doi:10.1155/2012/573965 Editorial Spatial Studies on Vector-Transmitted Diseases and Vectors Maria Goreti Rosa-Freitas,1 Nildimar Alves Honorio,´ 1 Claudia´ Torres Codec¸o,2 Guilherme Loureiro Werneck,3 and Nicolas Degallier4 1 Laboratorio´ de Transmissores de Hematozoarios,´ Fundac¸ao˜ Oswaldo Cruz, Avenida Brasil 4365 Manguinhos, 21045-900 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil 2 Programa de Computac¸ao˜ Cient´ıfica, Fundac¸ao˜ Oswaldo Cruz, 21045-900 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil 3 Instituto de Medicina Social, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, 20550-900 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil 4 IRD UMR182, Laboratoire d’Oc´eanographie et du Climat, Exp´erimentation et Approches Num´eriques (LOCEAN) Tour 45-55, 4e ´etage, case 100, 4 place Jussieu, 75252 Paris Cedex 5, France Correspondence should be addressed to Maria Goreti Rosa-Freitas, goreti@ioc.fiocruz.br Received 10 May 2012; Accepted 10 May 2012 Copyright © 2012 Maria Goreti Rosa-Freitas et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 1. Space, the First Frontier 2. The Study of Space Space is the stage where factors leading to disease take place. Spatial analysis is concerned with the geographic space, that Landscape epidemiology, health geography, spatial epi- is, observations that correspond to locations in space that demiology, and landscape ecology1 are disciplines that share capture their proximity in the real world. The interrelation a fundamental concept: space. between entities increases with proximity in the real world Space as herein defined is the multidimensional extent and their representation in geographic space and assessment in which elements and historical events—geological, phys- using spatial analysis techniques are appropriate (Tobler’s iographical, ecological, climatic, economical, and cultural— first law of geography, [8]) and in accordance with the concur and interact with humans to influence the presence, concept of spatial dependence that forms the foundation of development, activity, and longevity of pathogens, reservoirs, spatial analysis. and vectors, leading to different patterns of infection and In 1939, Pavlovsky structured the theory of the natural disease. nidality4 of transmissible diseases, known outside the Soviet Disease is a spatially-determined phenomenon [1–3]. Union only by late 1950s [2, 3]. Pavlovsky’s theory consisted The correct identification of spatial risk factors plays a key of 3 axioms: (1) diseases tend to be limited geographically; role in prediction, prevention, and control of disease [4–7]. (2) this spatial variation arises from underlying variation in The analysis of space and its role in diseases has been the physical and/or biological conditions that support the occupying thinkers since Hippocrates circa 400 B.C. Terms pathogen and its vectors and reservoirs; (3) if those abiotic like tropical diseases, malaria, and American trypanosomi- and biotic conditions can be delimited on maps, then both asis just to name a few, have geographically-oriented denom- contemporaneous risk and future change in risk should be inations that immediately refer to spaces where transmission predictable [9]. occurs2. A landmark on spatial analysis was Snow’s 1854 map of According to Hippocrates, an endemic disease is deter- cholera deaths and the water pumps that supplied the city. mined by the nature of a certain place. The term endemic3 The superposition of cholera cases and a main water pump entails in itself this concept. Hippocrates’ ecological concept gave support to his hypothesis that cholera was spread by the of disease was brought up again by Galen in the early water [10]. Christian era and passed untouched through the moderniza- Spatial analysis comprises a set of generic exploration tion of science during the Renaissance. methods and the visualization of data in the form of maps. 2 Journal of Tropical Medicine Nonetheless, spatial analysis is neither a technology for Data selection, data cleaning, and preprocessing and, making maps nor a map is the sole objective to be achieved. moreover interpretation of results are all part of the sub- The interaction with mapped variables resulting from spatial jective qualitative interpretation. Subjective analysis should analysis is more challenging than the interaction with tradi- be ascertained as an important tool. The testing of different tional maps and spatial records. Spatial analysis has changed analyses should be extensively used to aggregate knowledge our perspective of viewing a map. It has moved mapping on the problem. Spatial analysis results should be used to from a historical role of input provider to a dynamic and corroborate or reject findings and applied to mathematical essential element