Tropical disease prevalence in Latin America presents opportunity for US

Tropical disease prevalence in Latin America presents opportunity for US
Date: September 25, 2014
Source: Rice University
Summary:
Recently published prevalence estimates of neglected tropical diseases
(NTDs) in five Latin American countries -- Bolivia, Cuba, Ecuador,
Nicaragua and Venezuela -- could suggest a new direction for United
States foreign policy in the region, according to a tropical-disease expert.

Recently published prevalence estimates of neglected tropical diseases
(NTDs) in five Latin American countries -- Bolivia, Cuba, Ecuador,
Nicaragua and Venezuela -- could suggest a new direction for United
States foreign policy in the region, according to a tropical-disease
expert at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy.
Dr. Peter Hotez, the fellow in disease and poverty at the Baker
Institute, outlined his insights in a new editorial, "The NTDs and
Vaccine Diplomacy in Latin America: Opportunities for United States
Foreign Policy," published in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected
Tropical Diseases.
"NTDs are commonly found wherever poverty is pervasive and the Latin
American and Caribbean region's major NTDs -- Chagas disease, cutaneous
leishmaniasis, dengue, intestinal helminth infections and malaria
(mostly vivax malaria) -- are highly endemic in Bolivia, Ecuador,
Nicaragua and Venezuela, while dengue is also an important NTD in Cuba,"
Hotez said. "Approximately 14-15 percent of the cases of these NTDs
occur in Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Venezuela, despite the fact
that these countries only comprise about 10 percent of the region's
population."
Hotez said such high numbers of people affected by NTDs afford potential
opportunities for the U.S. to work with these countries in programs of
science and global health diplomacy. "These programs might include
bilateral cooperative efforts to implement disease control and
elimination programs for the major NTDs, potentially relying on shared
expertise between the U.S. and the disease-endemic countries," he said.
There may also be specific opportunities for "vaccine diplomacy," a form
of science diplomacy focused on "joint development of lifesaving
vaccines and related technologies" conducted by scientists from "nations
that often disagree ideologically" or even those "actively engaged in
hostile actions," Hotez said. Both the U.S. and Cuba stand out for their
programs of vaccine research and development, with Cuba's Instituto
Finlay, for example, belonging to the Developing Countries Vaccine
Manufacturers Network. "Joint U.S.-Cuba programs in NTD vaccines,
possibly including scientists from Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua or
Venezuela, offer additional mechanisms on this front," Hotez said.

Journal Reference:
Peter J. Hotez. The NTDs and Vaccine Diplomacy in Latin America:
Opportunities for United States Foreign Policy. PLoS Neglected Tropical
Diseases, 2014; 8 (9): e2922 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002922

Source: Tropical disease prevalence in Latin America presents
opportunity for US -- ScienceDaily -
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140925182751.htm