Measurability of the epidemic reproduction number in data-driven contact networks.

ABSTRACT: The basic reproduction number is one of the conceptual cornerstones of mathematical epidemiology. Its classical definition as the number of secondary cases generated by a typical infected individual in a fully susceptible population finds a clear analytical expression in homogeneous and stratified mixing models. Along with the generation time (the interval between primary and secondary cases), the reproduction number allows for the characterization of the dynamics of an epidemic. A clear-cut theoretical picture, however, is hardly found in real data. Here, we infer from highly detailed sociodemographic data two multiplex contact networks representative of a subset of the Italian and Dutch populations. We then simulate an infection transmission process on these networks accounting for the n

SUBMITTER: Liu QH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6294899 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature