TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2006//
TI  - Negligible risk for epidemics after geophysical disasters
JO  - Emerging infectious diseases
A1  - Floret, Nathalie
A1  - Viel, Jean-Francois
A1  - Mauny, Frederic
A1  - Hoen, Bruno
A1  - Piarroux, Renaud
SP  - 543
EP  - 548
VL  - 12
IS  - 4
N2  - After geophysical disasters (i.e., earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis), media reports almost always stress the risk for epidemics; whether this risk is genuine has been debated. We analyzed the medical literature and data from humanitarian agencies and the World Health Organization from 1985 to 2004. Of >600 geophysical disasters recorded, we found only 3 reported outbreaks related to these disasters: 1 of measles after the eruption of Pinatubo in Philippines, 1 of coccidioidomycosis after an earthquake in California, and 1 of Plasmodium vivax malaria in Costa Rica related to an earthquake and heavy rainfall. Even though the humanitarian response may play a role in preventing epidemics, our results lend support to the epidemiologic evidence that short-term risk for epidemics after a geophysical disaster is very low.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1080-6040
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -