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Malaria, HIV, and tuberculosis (TB) collectively account for several million deaths each year, with all three ranking among the top ten killers in low-income countries. Despite being caused by very different organisms, malaria, HIV, and TB present a suite of challenges for mathematical modellers that are particularly pronounced in these infections, but represent general problems in infectious disease modelling, and highlight many of the challenges described throughout this issue. Here, we describe some of the unifying challenges that arise in modelling malaria, HIV, and TB, including variation in dynamics within the host, diversity in the pathogen, and heterogeneity in human contact networks and behaviour. Through the lens of these three pathogens, we provide specific examples of the other challenges in this issue and discuss their implications for informing public health efforts.

Original publication

DOI

10.1016/j.epidem.2015.02.002

Type

Journal article

Journal

Epidemics

Publication Date

03/2015

Volume

10

Pages

102 - 107

Keywords

HIV, Malaria, Modelling, Tuberculosis, Genetic Variation, HIV, HIV Infections, Host-Pathogen Interactions, Humans, Malaria, Models, Statistical, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Tuberculosis, Pulmonary