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Modelling Transmission of Buruli Ulcer in the Central Region of Ghana

Received: 11 June 2020    Accepted: 10 September 2020    Published: 31 December 2020
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Abstract

The pathogen of Buruli Ulcer (BU) is known to be Mycobacterium Ulcerans whose mode of transmission is entirely not known, although the disease is recognised to be associated with contaminated water. The hypothesised transmission involves humans being bitten by the water bugs (vector) that prey on mollusks, snails and young fishes. The hypothesised transmission also involves humans feeding on an infected fish or frog. This study seeks to contribute to the dynamics and analyses of the transmission mechanism of Buruli Ulcer in communities along Offin River in the Central Region of Ghana. The model equilibria were determined and conditions for the equilibria were also established. The basic reproduction number, was derived using the Next Generation approach and its estimated value was 1.20771. The result reveals that, is greater than 1, indicating a horizontal spread of the infection across the population. The transmission dynamics of Buruli Ulcer model of the Susceptible, Infected and Recovered (SIR) type also show that the disease will continue to spread at the study areas as long as the reservoir for Mycobacterium Ulcerans continue to sustain enough infected water bugs and infected fish or infected frog to contain the disease. The study further concludes that, the rate of spread of Buruli Ulcer in the affected communities continue to be high due to its mode of transmission. This study suggest that adequate control measures including mass education and prompt treatment to curb the spread should be emphasized.

Published in Mathematical Modelling and Applications (Volume 5, Issue 4)
DOI 10.11648/j.mma.20200504.13
Page(s) 221-230
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Pathogen, Buruli, Ulcer, Ulcerans, Spread, Infected, Stagnant, Humans, Vector

References
[1] Daley, D. J. and Gani, J. (2005), Epidemic Modelling and Introduction, NY: Cambridge University Press.
[2] Moghadas, S. M. (2017), Gaining insights into human viral diseases through mathematics European Journal of Epidemiology, Vol 21, pp. 337–342.
[3] Effah, E., Nyame F, and Amankwah, R. K, (2016), “Spatial Distribution of Buruli Ulcer (BU) in Communities along River Offin in Central Ghana”, 4tH UMaT Biennial International Mining and Mineral Conference.
[4] Clancey, J., Dodge, R. and Lunn, H. F., (1962), Study of a mycobacterium causing skin ulceration in Uganda, Ann Soc Belg Med Trop, 4, pp. 585-590.
[5] Asiedu, K., Raviglione, M. C., Scherpbier, R. (2016), “World Health Organization and Global Buruli Ulcer Initiative”, Buruli ulcer: Mycobacterium ulcerans infection (No. WHO/CDS/CPE/GBUI/2000.1). Geneva: World Health Organization.
[6] Scott, B., Curtis, V., Rabie, T. and Garbrah-Aidoo, N., (2007), Health in our hands, but not in our heads: understanding hygiene motivation in Ghana, Health Policy and planning, 22, (4), pp. 225-233.
[7] Nyabadza, F. and Bonyah, E. (2015), “On the Transmission Dynamics of Buruli ulcer in Ghana: Insights through a mathematical model”, BMC research notes, pp. 656.
[8] Merritt, R. W., Walker, E. D., Small, P. L., Wallace, J. R., Johnson, P. D., Benbow, M. E. and Boakye, D. A. (2010), “Ecology and Transmission of Buruli Ulcer Disease: a systematic review”, PLoS neglected tropical diseases, Vol. 4, No. 12, pp. 911.
[9] Eddyani, M., Ofori-Adjei, D., Teugels, G., De Weirdt, D., Boakye, D., Meyers, W. M. and Portaels, F., (2018), Potential role for fish in transmission of Mycobacterium ulcerans disease (Buruli ulcer): an environmental study. Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 70, (9), pp. 5679-5681.
[10] Diekmann, O., Heesterbeek, J. A. P. and Roberts, M. G., (2009), “The Construction of Next Generation Matrices for Compartmental Epidemic Models”, Journal of the Royal Society Interface, Vol. 7, No. 47, pp. 873-885.
[11] Dontwi, I. K., Obeng-Denteh, W., Andam, E. A. and Obiri-Apraku, L., (2014), A mathematical model to predict the prevalence and transmission dynamics of tuberculosis in Amansie West District, Ghana, Journal of Advances in Mathematics and Computer Science, pp. 402-425.
[12] Bonyah, E., (2015), Mathematical models for the study of buruli ulcer dynamics in Ghana (Doctoral dissertation).
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Nyarko Christiana Cynthia, Nyarko Peter Kwesi, Ampofi Isaac, Asante Emmanuel. (2020). Modelling Transmission of Buruli Ulcer in the Central Region of Ghana. Mathematical Modelling and Applications, 5(4), 221-230. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.mma.20200504.13

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    ACS Style

    Nyarko Christiana Cynthia; Nyarko Peter Kwesi; Ampofi Isaac; Asante Emmanuel. Modelling Transmission of Buruli Ulcer in the Central Region of Ghana. Math. Model. Appl. 2020, 5(4), 221-230. doi: 10.11648/j.mma.20200504.13

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    AMA Style

    Nyarko Christiana Cynthia, Nyarko Peter Kwesi, Ampofi Isaac, Asante Emmanuel. Modelling Transmission of Buruli Ulcer in the Central Region of Ghana. Math Model Appl. 2020;5(4):221-230. doi: 10.11648/j.mma.20200504.13

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  • @article{10.11648/j.mma.20200504.13,
      author = {Nyarko Christiana Cynthia and Nyarko Peter Kwesi and Ampofi Isaac and Asante Emmanuel},
      title = {Modelling Transmission of Buruli Ulcer in the Central Region of Ghana},
      journal = {Mathematical Modelling and Applications},
      volume = {5},
      number = {4},
      pages = {221-230},
      doi = {10.11648/j.mma.20200504.13},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.mma.20200504.13},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.mma.20200504.13},
      abstract = {The pathogen of Buruli Ulcer (BU) is known to be Mycobacterium Ulcerans whose mode of transmission is entirely not known, although the disease is recognised to be associated with contaminated water. The hypothesised transmission involves humans being bitten by the water bugs (vector) that prey on mollusks, snails and young fishes. The hypothesised transmission also involves humans feeding on an infected fish or frog. This study seeks to contribute to the dynamics and analyses of the transmission mechanism of Buruli Ulcer in communities along Offin River in the Central Region of Ghana. The model equilibria were determined and conditions for the equilibria were also established. The basic reproduction number,   was derived using the Next Generation approach and its estimated value was 1.20771. The result reveals that,   is greater than 1, indicating a horizontal spread of the infection across the population. The transmission dynamics of Buruli Ulcer model of the Susceptible, Infected and Recovered (SIR) type also show that the disease will continue to spread at the study areas as long as the reservoir for Mycobacterium Ulcerans continue to sustain enough infected water bugs and infected fish or infected frog to contain the disease. The study further concludes that, the rate of spread of Buruli Ulcer in the affected communities continue to be high due to its mode of transmission. This study suggest that adequate control measures including mass education and prompt treatment to curb the spread should be emphasized.},
     year = {2020}
    }
    

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    T1  - Modelling Transmission of Buruli Ulcer in the Central Region of Ghana
    AU  - Nyarko Christiana Cynthia
    AU  - Nyarko Peter Kwesi
    AU  - Ampofi Isaac
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    T2  - Mathematical Modelling and Applications
    JF  - Mathematical Modelling and Applications
    JO  - Mathematical Modelling and Applications
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    EP  - 230
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
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    AB  - The pathogen of Buruli Ulcer (BU) is known to be Mycobacterium Ulcerans whose mode of transmission is entirely not known, although the disease is recognised to be associated with contaminated water. The hypothesised transmission involves humans being bitten by the water bugs (vector) that prey on mollusks, snails and young fishes. The hypothesised transmission also involves humans feeding on an infected fish or frog. This study seeks to contribute to the dynamics and analyses of the transmission mechanism of Buruli Ulcer in communities along Offin River in the Central Region of Ghana. The model equilibria were determined and conditions for the equilibria were also established. The basic reproduction number,   was derived using the Next Generation approach and its estimated value was 1.20771. The result reveals that,   is greater than 1, indicating a horizontal spread of the infection across the population. The transmission dynamics of Buruli Ulcer model of the Susceptible, Infected and Recovered (SIR) type also show that the disease will continue to spread at the study areas as long as the reservoir for Mycobacterium Ulcerans continue to sustain enough infected water bugs and infected fish or infected frog to contain the disease. The study further concludes that, the rate of spread of Buruli Ulcer in the affected communities continue to be high due to its mode of transmission. This study suggest that adequate control measures including mass education and prompt treatment to curb the spread should be emphasized.
    VL  - 5
    IS  - 4
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Mathematical Sciences Department, University of Mine and Technology, Tarkwa, Ghana

  • Mathematical Sciences Department, University of Mine and Technology, Tarkwa, Ghana

  • Mathematical Sciences Department, University of Mine and Technology, Tarkwa, Ghana

  • Mathematical Sciences Department, University of Mine and Technology, Tarkwa, Ghana

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