How Climate, Landscape and Economical Changes Increase the Exposure of Echinococcus Spp.

Abstract

Background: Echinococcosis is a global enzootic disease influenced by different biological and environmental factors. We investigated do and patient populations, and climatic and environmental factors affecting the distribution of Echinococcosis in Gansu Province, China. The risk to people in urban areas is increasing with climate, landscape, and lifestyle changes.Methods: We conducted a retrospective descriptive study using hospitalization case data (2000 to 2020) in Lanzhou. All hospital discharges with echinococcosis diagnosis placed in the first diagnostic position were analyzed, and clinical characteristics were described. We mapped the addresses of 626 hospitalized echinococcosis patients and distribution dogs and studied the effects of different temperature models, mean annual rainfall and slope, latitude, land covers, closeproximity to travel routes, livestock, and dog densities on the occurrence of echinococcosis using a geographical information systems approach. The spatial and temporal distribution of patient epidemiological data combined with infected dog fecal incidence from the scientific literature was also evaluated. We assessed model performance and variable importance to discover the relation of these variables to the exposure of the Echinococcus spp. niche. Then, we imported the resulting niche model into future global Shared Socioeconomic Pathways scenarios.Results: The average cost of treating a case of echinococcosis in Gansu Province was $24,370.2 and showed an increasing trend during the study period. The cost of treating a case of echinococcosis in different counties was significantly negative with their corresponding gross domestic product (GDP). The three factors with the strongest correlation to echinococcosis infection probability were (1) GLC (56.6%), (2) annual precipitation (Bio12, 21.2%), and (3) mean temperature of the Wettest Quarter (Bio12, 8.5% of variations). The risk map showed that areas characterized by Echinococcus spp were mainly located east southern Gansu Province with the highest probability, followed by areas in the center of Gansu Province. When comparing the possible future distribution with the present distribution of Echinococcus spp., an increasing tendency was observed in the highly suitable areas of Echinococcus spp., indicating that environmental changes would affect the distribution of Echinococcus spp.Conclusion: This study provides valuable information for cost-effective public health programs to control echinococcosis in Gansu Province and elsewhere. Raising travelers’ disease awareness and preventive health habits is an urgent agenda and most efficient-reaching action with a small investment.