Mathematical Modeling of Dengue Epidemic: Control Methods and Vaccination Strategies

TL;DR

This paper models dengue transmission and evaluates control and vaccination strategies, concluding that vaccination is essential for eradication since vector control alone cannot eliminate the disease.

Contribution

It introduces a mathematical model incorporating environmental, chemical, and vaccination controls, highlighting the necessity of vaccination for complete eradication.

Findings

Vaccination is crucial for dengue eradication.

Vector control alone cannot eliminate dengue.

Infected mosquitoes can be removed without stopping disease spread.

Abstract

Dengue is one of the most important infectious diseases in the world, in terms of death and economic cost. Hence, the modeling of dengue is of great importance to help us understand the dynamics disease, and interfering with its spreading mathematical by the proposition of control methods. In this work, control strategies in an attempt to eliminate the Aedes aegypti mosquito, as well as proposals for the vaccination campaign are evaluated. In our mathematical model, the mechanical control is accomplished through the environmental support capacity affected by a discrete function that represents removal of breeding. Chemical control is carried out from the use of insecticide and larvicidal. The efficacious of vaccination is studied through the removal of a fraction of individuals, proportional to the rate of vaccination, from the susceptible compartment and its transfer to the recovered compartment. Our major find is that the dengue fever epidemic is only eradicated with the use of an immunizing vaccine because control measures directed against the vector are not enough to halt disease spreading. Even where the infected mosquitoes are eliminated from the system, susceptible mosquitoes are still present, and infected humans cause dengue fever to reappear in the human population.