Effect of infection age on an SIS epidemic model on complex networks

In this paper, based on an SIS model, we construct an epidemic model with infection age to investigate the disease transmission on complex networks. By analyzing the characteristic equations associated with the equilibria, we obtain the basic reproduction number [Formula: see text]. It is shown that if [Formula: see text] then the disease-free equilibrium is globally asymptotically stable while if [Formula: see text] then there is a unique endemic equilibrium, which is asymptotically stable. Our investigation indicates that if the maximal degree of the network is large enough then the endemic equilibrium always exists. Sensitivity analysis on the basic reproduction number [Formula: see text] in terms of the parameters is carried out to illustrate their effects on the disease transmission and to develop appropriate control strategies.