[The application of remote sensing data in epidemic situation analysis of malaria and encephalitis B].
OBJECTIVE
To explore the epidemic regularity of malaria and encephalitis B by using the data of remote sensing (Rs) in flood area.


METHODS
The demarcation standards in counties with flood disaster were formed depending on the descriptive analysis results of remote sensing data and combined with that of field survey. Three indicators were used to analyze the epidemic situation of malaria and encephalitis B in Jiangxi Province during a heavy flooding in 1998: the increasing percentage of incidence in 1998 comparing with the median of past five years (1993-1997), the increasing percentage of incidence in 1998 comparing with that of 1997, the increasing percentage of incidence in 1999 comparing with that of 1998.


RESULTS
The demarcation standards of flooding counties were defined as follows: by Rs, a county with a flood area of over 100 thousand mu was classified into group one, a county with a flood area under 100 thousand mu was classified into group two, a county with reported flood but not identified by RS was classified into group three, the other counties in the province were classified into group four. The malaria incidence in the province in 1998 was at an average historical level. Compared with 1997, malaria incidence in each group increased in 1998 by 111.61% in group one, 97.50% in group two, 43.63% in group three. So there is an evident correlation between the flood area by Rs and the increasing of malaria incidence (Rs = 0.893, P < 0.05). Malaria incidence in 1999 in non-flood area increased by 83.39% in comparison with that of 1998. The encephalitis B incidence increased by 252.03% in 1998 in group four compared with that of 1997; while the incidence increased in all the four groups in 1999 than that of in 1998.


CONCLUSIONS
The remote sensing data on flood can help fully analyze the epidemic situation of malaria and encephalitis B.
Yu
Guo-wei
GW
Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shanghai 200025, China.
Tang
Lin-hua
LH
Zeng
Guang
G
Tang
Yin
Y
Mei
Jia-mo
JM
D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004190:Disasters; D004660:Encephalitis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008288:Malaria / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D013686:Telemetry