**4. Elements of Epidemiology of Vector-Borne Diseases in Haiti**

In recent decades, climate change has been the central theme of several international environmental congresses. Climatologist Katharine Hayhoe has even stated that "all human beings aspire to the same thing: to live safely on our planet. So, while our work must remain objective and impartial, we are increasingly raising

*Vector-Borne Diseases and Climate Change in the Environmental Context in Haiti DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96037*

our voices and supporting the clear message that climate change is real, that humans are responsible for it, that its consequences are serious and that we must act immediately". It is that climate change is a multidimensional and interdisciplinary field that should be of interest to all human beings living on this planet. Its manifestations are indeed multiple, such as heat waves, warming and ocean acidification, which have important consequences on the life cycle of the main vectors responsible for animal diseases and zoonosis. It also favors the emergence of certain vector-borne diseases and the geographical extension of vector-borne diseases in temperate zones [5].

According to the World Health Organization, vector-borne diseases are responsible for more than 17% of infectious diseases and cause more than one million deaths each year [29, 30].

#### **4.1 Scope of action of vector-borne disease epidemiology**

To fight vector-borne infectious diseases in humans and animals, it is important to know their epidemiology, i.e. to have relevant information on the pathogens, vectors and manifestations of these diseases. In other words, it is important to know, for example:


The epidemiology of vector-borne diseases is directly related to: the distribution, competence and capacity of vectors (the competence of a vector is its ability to infect a vertebrate host, to ensure the development of an infectious agent and to transmit this agent to another host, while capacity is associated with environmental conditions and also depends on: (i) the competence of the vector and the rate of vector-host contact; (ii) vector density and longevity; (iii) the level of infectivity of the infectious agents, their host specificity and their resistance to anti-infective; (iv) human activities, environmental and climatic conditions that may influence vector distribution and activity, and vector-human interactions and animal reservoirs [21].

In the case of Haiti, epidemiology should enable the collection of more data on the impact of climate change on the clinical and epidemiological manifestations of vector-borne diseases, and determine the consequences of climate change on ecosystems in Haiti in terms of biodiversity, vector habitats and the transmission period of certain vector-borne diseases, as well as social parameters. It would also be interesting to identify the main changes observed in Haiti in the evolution of vector-borne diseases following repeated natural disasters (cyclones) and large variations in rainfall recorded in recent years.
