01840nas a2200193   4500000000100000008004100001100001900042700001700061700001300078700001300091700001600104700001300120700001200133245015300145856008700298490000800385520123900393022001401632       2015                            d1 aGarchitorena A1 aNgonghala CN1 aGuegan J1 aTexier G1 aBellanger M1 aBonds MH1 aRoche B00aEconomic inequality caused by feedbacks between poverty and the dynamics of a rare tropical disease: the case of Buruli ulcer in sub-Saharan Africa.  uhttp://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/royprsb/282/1818/20151426.full.pdf 0 v2823 a<p>Editor's abstract:</p>

<p>Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) have received increasing attention in recent years by the global heath community, as they cumulatively constitute substantial burdens of disease as well as barriers for economic development. A number of common tropical diseases such as malaria, hookworm or schistosomiasis have well-documented economic impacts. However, much less is known about the population-level impacts of diseases that are rare but associated with high disability burden, which represent a great number of tropical diseases. Using an individual-based model of Buruli ulcer (BU), we demonstrate that, through feedbacks between health and economic status, such NTDs can have a significant impact on the economic structure of human populations even at low incidence levels. While average wealth is only marginally affected by BU, the economic conditions of certain subpopulations are impacted sufficiently to create changes in measurable population-level inequality.</p>

<p>A reduction of the disability burden caused by BU can thus maximize the economic growth of the poorest subpopulations and reduce significantly the economic inequalities introduced by the disease in endemic regions.</p>
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