One Health Intervention Strategies to Address Zoonotic Neglected Tropical Diseases in Southeast Asia: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Background Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) affect over 1 billion people worldwide, causing life-long disabilities and death. Many of the 20 NTDs prioritized by the World Health Organization are zoonotic, spreading between animals and humans. Southeast Asia faces a significant NTD burden, including zoonotic parasitic infections like echinococcosis, taeniasis/cysticercosis, and foodborne trematodiases (FBT). Despite recent research and programs emphasizing the importance of One Health efforts, there's limited insight into their implementation. This scoping review explores existing approaches for multi/cross-sectoral engagement with respect to three parasitic zoonotic NTDs in Southeast Asia. Additionally, we aimed to synthesize the One Health practices and advocate effective strategies for region-specific collaboration to tackle parasitic zoonotic NTDs.Methodology and principal findings We utilized the five-step framework of Arskey and O’Malley to conduct this scoping review. We systematically searched Pubmed, Web of Science, and Medline for peer-reviewed literatures. A total of 1725 publications were screened for eligibility and 105 publications identified for full-text screening. Fifteen (15) publications met our inclusion criteria, and we examined them for key themes related to One Health intervention strategies. Five themes emerged from our analysis: 1) health education, 2) treatment, 3) WASH practices, 4) ecosystem monitoring, and 5) surveillance and diagnostics. Additionally, we identified challenges cited during the implementation process, which included limited resources, community engagement, coordination and collaboration, and political commitment.Conclusions The importance of adopting a comprehensive strategy is strongly supported by the literature and WHO’s emphasis on One Health in the new NTD Road Map. While there are examples of One Health approaches being implemented to control parasitic zoonotic NTDs, the application of One Health strategies is not consistent throughout the Southeast Asia region. Therefore, there are valuable opportunities to develop an implementation research agenda and enhance regional coordination mechanisms. Additionally, future potential strategies should consider determinants of health in NTDs through a multi-sectoral lens.