Framework for application of geographic information system to the monitoring of dengue vectors.

In a successful management program of dengue vectors, not only health education, source reduction or insecticide application should be conducted, but all basic information should also be manipulated properly and efficiently. This information includes the surveys of species, dispersal and dynamics of vectors, as well as the detection of breeding sources, and the records of dengue cases and epidemic periods. Most of the above information expressed as regionalized variables always varies spatially and/or temporally. However, due to the deficiency of topological information, the conventional database management system cannot efficiently analyze those dengue related data. Thus, we have applied the geographic information system (GIS) to the monitoring of dengue vectors. The purpose of this report is to introduce the basic concepts of GIS, to describe the framework of the prototype dengue vector monitoring system which was built using data collected from the Sanmin area, Kaoshiung city, Taiwan, and to indicate the possibility of using this system to manipulate spatially correlated data and support decision making in the control of dengue disease.