Earth Observation, Spatial Data Quality, and Neglected Tropical Diseases

Area of Science:

• Environmental science
• Epidemiology
• Geographic Information Systems

Background:

• Earth observation (EO) is increasingly used to study neglected tropical diseases (NTDs).
• Acquiring and ensuring the quality of spatially and temporally indexed EO data presents significant challenges.
• Existing studies often overlook the explicit attention to the quality of EO products used in NTD epidemiology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review Earth observation products employed in NTD epidemiology research.
• To discuss fundamental spatial data quality (SDQ) issues limiting EO utilization in NTD studies.
• To highlight challenges in effectively using EO for NTD research.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search of Web of Science and PubMed for studies on EO and specific NTDs (echinococcosis, leptospirosis, schistosomiasis, soil-transmitted helminth infections).
• Inclusion of relevant literature identified from bibliographies of retrieved papers.
• Review of key SDQ issues including spatial/temporal scale, uncertainty, and quality information documentation.

Main Results:

• Extensive use of EO products in NTD epidemiology was confirmed.
• Little explicit attention is typically paid to the quality of these EO products.
• Key SDQ issues identified include spatial/temporal scale, uncertainty, and inadequate documentation/use of quality information.

Conclusions:

• Researchers must carefully consider SDQ when designing spatial-epidemiological studies for NTDs.
• SDQ considerations should inform uncertainty analysis in epidemiological studies.
• Documenting and sharing SDQ information is essential for advancing NTD research using EO data.