In this study, Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper (TM) and SPOT HRV Panchromatic data were analysed to determine the geometry of an active fault segment (the Ganos segment) in Gaziköy-Saros region, west of Marmara Sea, Turkey. Gaziköy-Saros/Ganos segment is a part of North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ). North-Anatolian fault is considered to be one of the most important active strike-slip faults in the wo...

Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is a mosquito-borne zoonotic pathogen. JEV is transmitted by paddy field breeding mosquitoes of the Culex vishnui subgroup, primarily by Culex tritaeniorhynchus vectors and amplified by pigs / Ardeidae birds in nature. Mosquitoes were sampled from identified villages during different season intervals from 2011 to 2014. Adult mosquitoes were collected which were...

A total of 177 free-ranging chickens from 19 Qwa-Qwa villages were bled from wing veins over a period of 6 months (June-November 2000). Serological tests indicated that 5% of chickens tested had been exposed to Newcastle disease, 43% to infectious bronchitis and 63% to Mycoplasma gallisepticum infection. McMaster and Visser sieve techniques were used to determine helminth and coccidia from pool...

BACKGROUND Animal tungiasis is believed to increase the prevalence and parasite burden in humans. Animal reservoirs of Tunga penetrans differ among endemic areas and their role in the epidemiology of tungiasis had never been investigated in Uganda. METHODS AND FINDINGS To identify the major animal reservoirs of Tunga penetrans and their relative importance in the transmission of tungiasis in ...

BACKGROUND There is a higher case-detection rate for leprosy among spatially proximate contacts such as household members and neighbors. Spatial information regarding the clustering of leprosy can be used to improve intervention strategies. Identifying high-risk areas within villages around known cases can be helpful in finding new cases. METHODS Using geographic information systems, we creat...

This study uses three rounds of panel data between October 1998 and November 1999 and covering 506 villages and 24,000 households in rural Mexico, to examine how the replacement of pre-existing subsidy programs by a conditional cash transfer program such as PROGRESA (the Health, Education and Nutrition Program) affects the consumption smoothing of households. The results obtained are consistent...

China accounts for a large number of suicides worldwide, and most occur in rural areas. Suicide research in China has primarily focused on individual-level risk factors, few have studied the influence of neighborhood contexts. This ecological study examines the association of suicide rates with social fragmentation and socioeconomic deprivation in Chinese rural villages. Data from the community...

Groundwater pollution from the petrochemical industry causes serious deterioration of soil and groundwater quality and impacts on human health worldwide. However, few studies have examined the effect of residential exposure to petrochemical chlorinated hydrocarbon-contaminated groundwater on renal function impairment in humans. We conducted an ecological study to investigate the two. A polyviny...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the effects of a government insurance programme covering tertiary care for the poor in Karnataka, India--Vajpayee Arogyashree Scheme (VAS)--on treatment seeking and postoperative outcomes. DESIGN Geographic regression discontinuity. SETTING 572 villages in Karnataka, India. PARTICIPANTS 3478 households in 300 villages where VAS was implemented and 3486 households in...