RT Journal Article
T1 Applying fuzzy logic to assess the biogeographical risk of dengue in South America
A1 Romero-Pacheco, David
A1 Olivero-Anarte, Jesús
A1 Real-Giménez, Raimundo
A1 Guerrero, José Carlos
K1 Biogeografía
AB Over the last decade, reports about dengue cases have increase worldwide, which is particularly worrisome in South America due to the historic record of dengue outbreaks from the seventeenth century until the first half of the twentieth century. Dengue is a viral disease that involves insect vectors, namely Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus, which implies that, to prevent and combat outbreaks, it is necessary to understand the set of ecological and biogeographical factors affecting both the vector species and the virus. We contribute with a methodology based on fuzzy logic that is helpful to disentangle the main factors that determine favorable environmental conditions for vectors and diseases. Using favorability functions as fuzzy logic modelling technique and the fuzzy intersection, union and inclusion as fuzzy operators, we were able to specify the territories at biogeographical risk of dengue outbreaks in South America. Our results indicate that the distribution of Ae. aegypti mostly encompasses the biogeographical framework of dengue in South America, which suggests that this species is the principal vector responsible for the geographical extent of dengue cases in the continent. Nevertheless, the intersection between the favorability for dengue cases and the union of the favorability for any of the vector species provided a comprehensive map of the biogeographical risk for dengue. Fuzzy logic is an appropriate conceptual and operational tool to tackle the nuances of the vector-illness biogeographical interaction. The application of fuzzy logic may be useful in decision-making by the public health authorities to prevent, control and mitigate vector-borne diseases.
PB BMC Springer Nature
YR 2019
FD 2019
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10630/29501
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10630/29501
LA eng
NO Romero D, Olivero J, Real R, Guerrero JC (2019) Applying fuzzy logic to assess the biogeographical risk of dengue in South America. Parasites & Vectors 12: 428.
NO DR was supported by a grant from the Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación de Uruguay (ANII) (2016–2018), and from the Graduate Academic Commission (CAP, from Spanish acronym Comisión Académica de Posgrado) of the Universidad de la República (2018–2020). This study was supported by the project CGL2016-76747-R (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, España, y el Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional, Unión Europea).
DS RIUMA. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Málaga
RD 19 ene 2026