Epidemiological aspects of the persistent transmission of rabies during an outbreak (2010 - 2017) in Harare, Zimbabwe.

ABSTRACT: Canine-mediated human rabies is endemic to the entire African continent, where the disease burden is often highest in rural communities of resource-limited countries. In this study, we analysed an animal rabies outbreak, which had persisted since 2010 in the predominantly metropolitan capital city of Zimbabwe, Harare. As rabies is considered to disproportionally affect rural communities, the persistence of urban rabies in this metropolitan setting is of interest. In order to gain an improved understanding of the epidemiology of the outbreak under investigation, we utilised both routine surveillance data that had been collected during the first eight years of the outbreak (2010-2017), as well as molecular epidemiological analyses relying on the Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo methodology.

SUBMITTER: Coetzer A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6328171 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature