Impact of Climate Change on Disease Distribution in the Tropics

In the field of global health, climate change poses a severe and multifaceted challenge. The World Health Organization describes it as the most significant health threat humanity faces today, with its repercussions extending from direct outcomes like morbidity and mortality during extreme weather events to subtler, indirect effects. These indirect impacts include alterations in physical and ecological dynamics that shift disease distributions, intensifying the threat of infectious and zoonotic diseases that rely on specific climatic conditions to thrive.

The goal of this research topic is to illuminate the ways in which changing climates affect the prevalence and spread of zoonotic and infectious diseases in tropical regions. It seeks to examine not only the expanding geographic ranges and intensification of vector-borne illnesses but also to explore the increasing frequency and severity of diseases transmitted through water and food due to changes in temperature and water quality. Moreover, with zoonotic diseases comprising a significant fraction of emerging infectious diseases, understanding their connection to climate change is crucial.

To gather further insights in this crucial field, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:
- Changes in the geographic distribution of vector-borne diseases;
- Impact of temperature and water quality on food- and water-borne diseases;
- Analysis of zoonotic disease emergence in relation to climatic shifts;
- Strategies for health systems in tropical regions to adapt to increased disease burdens;
- Case studies from African nations on the frontline of climate impacts.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: climate change, tropical diseases, disease distribution, zoonotic infection, infectious diseases

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.