Chapter 8 Vector control and surveillance under lockdown: COVID-19 and future pandemics
In: Planetary health approaches to understand and control vector-borne diseasesPrograma Centroamericano de Maestría en Entomología, Universidad de Panamá, Bella Vista, Manuel E. Batista y Avenida Jose De Fábrega. Estafeta Universitaria Apartado 3366, Panamá 4 República de Panamá
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Abstract
Vector-borne diseases (VBD s) are widespread throughout the Americas, a region severely affected by the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In order to curb the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), health officials across the world established harsh constraints for people`s movement, including curfews and various levels of community lockdown. Although highly effective in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis initially, these containment tactics appear to have increased transmission likelihood for multiple vector-borne pathogens co-occurring with SARS-CoV-2. This could be due in part to logistical and safety challenges that prevent effective surveillance and control of arthropods that transmit pathogens affecting humans. This scenario is concerning since the Americas and other regions could be undergoing massive VBD outbreaks that might go unnoticed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. To reduce the risk of VBD exacerbation during a pandemic like COVID-19, i.e. the occurrence of a coronavirus-VBD syndemic, health personnel must be trained to adjust surveillance and control activities around households while respecting non-pharmaceutical disease prevention measures like social distancing. In this chapter, we examine the options to ensure effective vector monitoring and management in the face of large epidemics or pandemics of contagious diseases that consume public health resources and restrict individual human movement. We make recommendations for future investigation on vector surveillance and control strategies under various epidemiological scenarios and levels of community lockdown, as well as research methods for monitoring vector-borne pathogens during and after a pandemic.