The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review

The incidence of climate-sensitive infectious diseases (CSIDs), such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika, has been rising in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Reported cases of these diseases nearly doubled between 2022 and 2023, with the highest figure reported from Brazil. However, evidence regar...

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Main Authors: Camila Gonzalez, Catalina González-Uribe, Monica Pinilla-Roncancio, Sebastián Castaño-Duque, Nohemi Caballero, Laura Yuriko González-Teshima, Juan Sebastian Arias-Amaya, Juliana Helo Sarmiento, Natalia Niño-Machado
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2025-04-01
Series:BMJ Global Health
Online Access:https://gh.bmj.com/content/10/4/e018302.full
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author Camila Gonzalez
Catalina González-Uribe
Monica Pinilla-Roncancio
Sebastián Castaño-Duque
Nohemi Caballero
Laura Yuriko González-Teshima
Juan Sebastian Arias-Amaya
Juliana Helo Sarmiento
Natalia Niño-Machado
author_facet Camila Gonzalez
Catalina González-Uribe
Monica Pinilla-Roncancio
Sebastián Castaño-Duque
Nohemi Caballero
Laura Yuriko González-Teshima
Juan Sebastian Arias-Amaya
Juliana Helo Sarmiento
Natalia Niño-Machado
author_sort Camila Gonzalez
collection DOAJ
description The incidence of climate-sensitive infectious diseases (CSIDs), such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika, has been rising in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Reported cases of these diseases nearly doubled between 2022 and 2023, with the highest figure reported from Brazil. However, evidence regarding the economic cost of CSIDs is limited in the region. This scoping review aims to identify the available evidence on the economic impacts of CSIDs in LAC countries and the potential costs and benefits of adaptation interventions. We searched PubMed, the Virtual Health Library, Web of Science, Scopus, JSTOR and EconPapers and included peer-reviewed and grey-literature studies published between January 2015 and December 2023. 10 peer-reviewed studies were included in this review: 9 assessed the economic impacts of the health consequences of CSIDs and 1 assessed the economics of adaptation policies or programmes concerning human health in LAC countries. Most studies were conducted in Mexico and Brazil. Studies have focused primarily on the economic costs of arboviruses, influenza and enteritis. The outcomes most frequently studied were disability-adjusted life years and mortality. Only one study evaluated the economic impact of implementing an adaptation intervention for dengue. These findings highlight a significant gap in understanding the economic impacts of CSIDs, particularly because most studies fail to monetise the reported metrics, limiting their ability to provide a comprehensive assessment of economic costs and cost-effectiveness analyses of interventions. There is a need for further research in this field, incorporating data from a diverse range of countries in the region and analysing the economic impacts of various CSIDs, as well as the cost-effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing their prevalence.
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spelling doaj-art-dcc3329349074790b7cb05db81806d9f2025-08-20T02:27:14ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Global Health2059-79082025-04-0110410.1136/bmjgh-2024-018302The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping reviewCamila Gonzalez0Catalina González-Uribe1Monica Pinilla-Roncancio2Sebastián Castaño-Duque3Nohemi Caballero4Laura Yuriko González-Teshima5Juan Sebastian Arias-Amaya6Juliana Helo Sarmiento7Natalia Niño-Machado8Centro de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitologia Tropical (CIMPAT). Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, School of Science, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, ColombiaSchool of Medicine, University of Los Andes, Bogota, ColombiaUniversidad de los Andes Facultad de Medicina, Bogota, Cundinamarca, ColombiaHospital Universitario San Ignacio, Bogota, ColombiaUniversidad de los Andes, Bogota, ColombiaUniversidad de los Andes, Bogota, ColombiaUniversidad de los Andes, Bogota, ColombiaSchool of Economics, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, ColombiaCentre of Sustainable Development Goals, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, ColombiaThe incidence of climate-sensitive infectious diseases (CSIDs), such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika, has been rising in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Reported cases of these diseases nearly doubled between 2022 and 2023, with the highest figure reported from Brazil. However, evidence regarding the economic cost of CSIDs is limited in the region. This scoping review aims to identify the available evidence on the economic impacts of CSIDs in LAC countries and the potential costs and benefits of adaptation interventions. We searched PubMed, the Virtual Health Library, Web of Science, Scopus, JSTOR and EconPapers and included peer-reviewed and grey-literature studies published between January 2015 and December 2023. 10 peer-reviewed studies were included in this review: 9 assessed the economic impacts of the health consequences of CSIDs and 1 assessed the economics of adaptation policies or programmes concerning human health in LAC countries. Most studies were conducted in Mexico and Brazil. Studies have focused primarily on the economic costs of arboviruses, influenza and enteritis. The outcomes most frequently studied were disability-adjusted life years and mortality. Only one study evaluated the economic impact of implementing an adaptation intervention for dengue. These findings highlight a significant gap in understanding the economic impacts of CSIDs, particularly because most studies fail to monetise the reported metrics, limiting their ability to provide a comprehensive assessment of economic costs and cost-effectiveness analyses of interventions. There is a need for further research in this field, incorporating data from a diverse range of countries in the region and analysing the economic impacts of various CSIDs, as well as the cost-effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing their prevalence.https://gh.bmj.com/content/10/4/e018302.full
spellingShingle Camila Gonzalez
Catalina González-Uribe
Monica Pinilla-Roncancio
Sebastián Castaño-Duque
Nohemi Caballero
Laura Yuriko González-Teshima
Juan Sebastian Arias-Amaya
Juliana Helo Sarmiento
Natalia Niño-Machado
The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review
BMJ Global Health
title The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review
title_full The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review
title_fullStr The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review
title_full_unstemmed The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review
title_short The economics of climate-sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in Latin America and the Caribbean: a scoping review
title_sort economics of climate sensitive infectious diseases affecting human health in latin america and the caribbean a scoping review
url https://gh.bmj.com/content/10/4/e018302.full
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