The Use of GIS and Remote Sensing in Schistosomiasis Control in China

Abstract

Despite considerable achievements in the control of schistosomiasis in China, it remains one of the country’s most serious public health problems. Geographic information systems and remote sensing provide new tools for better understanding the spatial epidemiology of disease transmission. We present applications of these technologies at both the regional and local scale. At the regional scale, we compare remote sensing approaches for mapping snail intermediate host habitat in the mountainous environment and the flood basins of the upper and lower Yangtze River, respectively. At the local scale, we present the use of global positioning systems and geocoding of routinely collected field data. High-resolution IKONOS imagery is used to identify landscape characteristics associated with disease transmission at the village level. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of these technologies for improved disease control.