A comparison of spatial and social clustering of cholera in Matlab, Bangladesh

Abstract

Infectious diseases often cluster spatially, but can also cluster socially because they are transmitted within social networks. This study compares spatial and social clustering of cholera in rural Bangladesh. Data include a spatially referenced longitudinal demographic database which consists of approximately 200,000 people and laboratory-confirmed cholera cases from 1983 to 2003. Matrices are created of kinship ties between households using a complete network design and distance matrices are also created to model spatial relationships. Moran's I statistics are calculated to measure clustering within both social and spatial matrices. The results show that cholera always clusters in space and seldom within social networks. Cholera is transmitted mostly through the local environment rather than through person-to-person contact. Comparing spatial and social network analysis can help improve understanding of disease transmission.

Geographical Perspectives on Epidemic Transmission of Cholera in Haiti, October 2010 Through March 2013

“…Other geographical studies have investigated the spread of cholera in relation to past conflicts (Smallman-Raynor and Cliff 1998a, 1998b, 2004, while social constructions of the disease in the nineteenth century have also been explored (Jackson 2013). More particularly, the present study is underpinned by an ongoing geographical concern with the spatial transmission of cholera as illustrated by the recent series of modelling studies in relation to Matlab, Bangladesh (Giebultowicz et al 2011;Emch et al 2012).…”

Making a Place for Space: Spatial Thinking in Social Science

“…Radil, Flint and Tita’s (2010) research on gang-related violence, which explicitly seeks to “spatialize social networks,” concludes that both social network connections (rivalries with other gangs) and proximity (treating adjacent territories as their turf) influence violence. However among many similar studies of health risks, Giebultowicz et al (2011, p. 1387) find that cholera in rural Bangladesh “always clusters in space and seldom within social networks” (as defined by kinship networks).…”

Heterogeneity in multiple transmission pathways: modelling the spread of cholera and other waterborne disease in networks with a common water source

“…This simple network is motivated by living conditions in rural Bangladesh, where cholera is endemic [14]. Groups of patrileneally related families may live in multiple household structures known as baris [13], sharing a courtyard and kitchen. Many baris may share a water source such as a tube well for drinking water, or a local stream or lake.…”