Migration, Health and Environmental Change along the Interoceanic Highway in Peru

William Pan, Duke University
Richard Bilsborrow, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Beth Feingold, Johns Hopkins University
Gabriela Salmon-Mulanovich, Johns Hopkins University
Abel Estela, U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 6
Andres Lescano, U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 6
Hugo Razurri, U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 6
Eric Halsey, U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 6

Anthropogenic environmental change has become increasingly implicated as a key driver of disease transmission. In the Amazon, environmental change occurs most rapidly following road construction. In July 2011, we initiated a population-based study in the southern Peruvian Amzaon to examine the relationship between population-environment changes and human health in 50 urban and rural communities (600 households) near the recently constructed Interoceanic Highway. In this paper we present our initial findings. Data collection is ongoing at the time of this abstract (40% complete), thus our extended abstract describes the study design and expected data to be presented, including TFR, temporary labor migration, household mobility, obesity, blood pressure, and prevalence of malaria, anemia and dengue fever infection. We are particularly interested in the impact of migration and human mobility on the risk of infectious disease as well as dual-burden of infectious and chronic disease that exists in this region.