Population mobility and disease transmission: the example of guinea worm

Population mobility can bring people into contact with disease agents, and transfer these agents to new populations. This paper suggests ways in which population movements are implicated in the transmission of one communicable disease, guinea worm or dracunculiasis, a parasitic disease affecting 5-15 million people every year in Africa, India and Pakistan. A typology of population mobility which distinguishes between rural and urban sectors, and between circulation and uni-directional permanent migration is used. An understanding of population movements associated with guinea worm, and with other communicable diseases, can also provide useful guidelines for effective disease control strategies.