I am a PhD student in the Department of Epidemiology at the University of Florida and a Department of Defense/ASEE Science Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholar with Army Public Health Center's Clinical Public Health & Epidemiology Portfolio. My work involves the statistical modeling of social, biological and epidemiological surveillance data (primarily related to infectious diseases) to provide decision support tools to policymakers, public health professionals and clinicians. Supervisors: Derek Cummings, Mattia Prosperi, Eben Kenah and Xinguang Chen
Background: Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes,... more Background: Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes, the same vectors that transmit dengue virus and chikungunya. Recent work has suggested that prior infection with dengue could lead to more severe clinical disease in ZIKV patients. Here, we describe the spatial distribution of and clinical symptoms experienced by ZIKV cases in Mexico. Methods: We performed Fisher's Exact test and Pearson's Chi-Square tests on data from Mexico's national surveillance system on the demographic and clinical characteristics of ZIKV patients (N = 84), and then a multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine demographic risk factors for patients presenting with at least 9 symptoms. We also mapped the cases to describe the spatial distribution of ZIKV in Mexico. Results: Results from the multivariate logistic regression analysis indicate that, controlling for all covari-ates, sex (male) is a significant protective factor in reporting a high number of symptoms (OR = 0.36, 95% CI: 0.14, 0.92), and that a one-year increase in age is associated with a 4% increase in odds of having at least 9 symptoms (95% CI: 1.00, 1.08). Spatial analysis revealed more than 50% cases reported within 50 km of railways. Conclusion: We found that sex and age are both significant risk factors for ZIKV infection severity, using number of reported symptoms as a proxy. The presence of cases along railways indicates that transportation networks within Mexico may be relevant for the national and international spread of the disease.
Background: The geographic distribution and burden of dengue is increasing globally. This study a... more Background: The geographic distribution and burden of dengue is increasing globally. This study aims to evaluate dengue outbreaks and to substantiate the need for strengthened surveillance, reporting and control in Eritrea.
Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes, the same ve... more Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes, the same vectors that transmit dengue virus and chikungunya. Recent work has suggested that prior infection with dengue could lead to more severe clinical disease in ZIKV patients. Here, we describe the spatial distribution of and clinical symptoms experienced by ZIKV cases in Mexico. We performed Fisher's Exact test and Pearson's Chi-Square tests on data from Mexico's national surveillance system on the demographic and clinical characteristics of ZIKV patients (N=84), and then a multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine demographic risk factors for patients presenting with at least 9 symptoms. We also mapped the cases to describe the spatial distribution of ZIKV in Mexico. Results from the multivariate logistic regression analysis indicate that, controlling for all covariates, sex (male) is a significant protective factor in reporting a high number of symptoms (OR=0.36, 95...
(2016): Community-based reports of morbidity, mortality, and health-seeking behaviours in four Mo... more (2016): Community-based reports of morbidity, mortality, and health-seeking behaviours in four Monrovia communities during the West African Ebola epidemic, Global Public Health,
Background: Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes,... more Background: Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes, the same vectors that transmit dengue virus and chikungunya. Recent work has suggested that prior infection with dengue could lead to more severe clinical disease in ZIKV patients. Here, we describe the spatial distribution of and clinical symptoms experienced by ZIKV cases in Mexico. Methods: We performed Fisher's Exact test and Pearson's Chi-Square tests on data from Mexico's national surveillance system on the demographic and clinical characteristics of ZIKV patients (N = 84), and then a multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine demographic risk factors for patients presenting with at least 9 symptoms. We also mapped the cases to describe the spatial distribution of ZIKV in Mexico. Results: Results from the multivariate logistic regression analysis indicate that, controlling for all covari-ates, sex (male) is a significant protective factor in reporting a high number of symptoms (OR = 0.36, 95% CI: 0.14, 0.92), and that a one-year increase in age is associated with a 4% increase in odds of having at least 9 symptoms (95% CI: 1.00, 1.08). Spatial analysis revealed more than 50% cases reported within 50 km of railways. Conclusion: We found that sex and age are both significant risk factors for ZIKV infection severity, using number of reported symptoms as a proxy. The presence of cases along railways indicates that transportation networks within Mexico may be relevant for the national and international spread of the disease.
Background: The geographic distribution and burden of dengue is increasing globally. This study a... more Background: The geographic distribution and burden of dengue is increasing globally. This study aims to evaluate dengue outbreaks and to substantiate the need for strengthened surveillance, reporting and control in Eritrea.
Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes, the same ve... more Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging arbovirus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes, the same vectors that transmit dengue virus and chikungunya. Recent work has suggested that prior infection with dengue could lead to more severe clinical disease in ZIKV patients. Here, we describe the spatial distribution of and clinical symptoms experienced by ZIKV cases in Mexico. We performed Fisher's Exact test and Pearson's Chi-Square tests on data from Mexico's national surveillance system on the demographic and clinical characteristics of ZIKV patients (N=84), and then a multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine demographic risk factors for patients presenting with at least 9 symptoms. We also mapped the cases to describe the spatial distribution of ZIKV in Mexico. Results from the multivariate logistic regression analysis indicate that, controlling for all covariates, sex (male) is a significant protective factor in reporting a high number of symptoms (OR=0.36, 95...
(2016): Community-based reports of morbidity, mortality, and health-seeking behaviours in four Mo... more (2016): Community-based reports of morbidity, mortality, and health-seeking behaviours in four Monrovia communities during the West African Ebola epidemic, Global Public Health,
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