WHO Technical Report Series Series 972

Research Priorities for Helminth Infections

Technical Report of the TDR Disease Reference Group on Helminth Infections

Paperback
March 2013
9789241209724
More details
  • Publisher
    World Health Organization
  • Published
    7th March 2013
  • ISBN 9789241209724
  • Language English
  • Pages 191 pp.
  • Size 8.25" x 11.75"
$48.00

Over a billion people in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Americas are infected with one or more helminth species, causing morbidity that helps maintain the vicious cycle of poverty, decreased productivity, and inadequate socioeconomic development.

This report presents an evaluation of current research and challenges in controlling the helminthiases of public health importance, including onchocerciasis, lymphatic filariasis, soil-transmitted helminthiases, schistosomiasis, food-borne trematodiases and taeniasis/cysticercosis. The evaluation covers five major themes--intervention, epidemiology and surveillance, environmental and social ecology, data and modelling, and fundamental biology.

Despite the recent demonstrated successes and expansion of tools for the helminthiases outlined here, and the development of some research capacity, the evaluation found major deficiencies in our current control tools, in diagnostics, and in our fundamental knowledge of helminth biology and transmission dynamics, as well as in capacity and policy for health research.

Thus the current research issues are summarized here, and opportunities for improving disease control and reducing poverty are identified. Recommendations are presented to inform public health policy, guide implementation programs, and focus the research community on the needs of disease control and the opportunities for bettering human welfare.

This is one of ten disease and thematic reference group reports that have come out of the TDR Think Tank, all of which have contributed to the development of the Global Report for Research on Infectious Diseases of Poverty.

The TDR Disease Reference Group on Helminth Infections
Acronyms and abbreviations
List of species
Executive summary
1. Introduction
2. Methodology and prioritization
3. Overview of trends and driving forces of persistent, emerging and re-emerging helminth infections and the consequent research and control challenges
4. Overview of significant recent advances for the control and elimination of helminth infections and deeper analysis of control challenges and research issues for helminth diseases
5. Intersectoral and cross-cutting issues
6. Regional highlights and research capacity
7. Regional and national policies on research and their implications
8. Research priority recommendations to policy and decision-makers
9. Conclusions
10. References
Annex 1 The TDR disease and thematic reference groups Think Tank for Infectious Diseases of Poverty, and host countries
Annex 2 Membership of the Disease Reference Group on Helminth Infections (DRG4)
Annex 3 Composition of the Think Tank
Annex 4 Distribution of the Think Tank leadership (co-Chairs)
Annex 5 The top ten research priority areas for helminthiases recommended by DRG4
Annex 6 Research landmarks and their projected impacts on the helminthiases in the short, mid and long term periods

World Health Organization

World Health Organization is a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, charged to act as the world's directing and coordinating authority on questions of human health. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries, and monitoring and assessing health trends.