Global distribution maps of the leishmaniases

Abstract

The leishmaniases are vector-borne diseases that have a broad global distribution throughout much of the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Despite representing a significant public health burden, our understanding of the global distribution of the leishmaniases remains vague, reliant upon expert opinion and limited to poor spatial resolution. A global assessment of the consensus of evidence for leishmaniasis was performed at a sub-national level by aggregating information from a variety of sources. A database of records of cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis occurrence was compiled from published literature, online reports, strain archives, and GenBank accessions. These, with a suite of biologically relevant environmental covariates, were used in a boosted regression tree modelling framework to generate global environmental risk maps for the leishmaniases. These high-resolution evidence-based maps can help direct future surveillance activities, identify areas to target for disease control and inform future burden estimation efforts.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02851.001

eLife digest

Each year 1–2 million people are diagnosed with a tropical disease called leishmaniasis, which is caused by single-celled parasites. People are infected when they are bitten by sandflies carrying the parasite, and often develop skin lesions around the bite site. Though mild cases may recover on their own or with treatment, sometimes the parasites multiply and spread elsewhere causing further skin lesions and facial disfigurement. Furthermore, the parasites can also infect internal organs such as the spleen and the liver, which without treatment can be fatal.

The parasites that cause leishmaniasis are found in 88 countries around the world, mainly in South and Central America, Africa, Asia, and southern Europe. However, over 90% of potentially fatal infections occur in just six countries: Brazil, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, India, and Bangladesh. Although a few studies have looked at the distribution of leishmaniasis within different countries, we still do not have a complete picture of the distribution of the disease on a global scale.

To address this, Pigott et al. set out to create detailed maps of the distribution of leishmaniasis and the factors that promote its spread. Similar techniques had been previously used to map dengue fever, another tropical disease. Computer modelling was used to generate the maps based on data about the environment at the locations of known cases of leishmaniasis. This information was then used to infer the likelihood of leishmaniasis being present at other locations across the globe.

Based on their maps, Pigott et al. estimate that about 1.7 billion people, or one quarter of the world's population, live in areas where they are at potential risk of leishmaniasis. People living in built-up areas outside of cities are at the greatest risk, likely because some sandfly species prefer to live near dwellings, but other social and economic factors also contribute to the risk of catching this disease.

The factors driving the transmission of leishmaniasis differed in the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia) and the New World (the Americas): built-up areas were more likely to be at risk in the Old World, while temperature and rainfall were bigger factors affecting risk in the New World. It is hoped that the maps created by Pigott et al. will help inform future estimates of the burden of leishmaniasis and target surveillance and disease control efforts more effectively to combat this tropical disease.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02851.002