Skip Navigation


American Journal of Epidemiology Advance Access originally published online on May 12, 2009
American Journal of Epidemiology 2009 170(1):120-129; doi:10.1093/aje/kwp092
This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrowOA All Versions of this Article:
170/1/120    most recent
kwp092v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Kuan, G.
Right arrow Articles by Harris, E.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Kuan, G.
Right arrow Articles by Harris, E.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

American Journal of Epidemiology © 2009 The Authors
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/uk/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

PRACTICE OF EPIDEMIOLOGY

The Nicaraguan Pediatric Dengue Cohort Study: Study Design, Methods, Use of Information Technology, and Extension to Other Infectious Diseases

Guillermina Kuan, Aubree Gordon, William Avilés, Oscar Ortega, Samantha N. Hammond, Douglas Elizondo, Andrea Nuñez, Josefina Coloma, Angel Balmaseda and Eva Harris

Correspondence to Dr. Eva Harris, Division of Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, 1 Barker Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-7354 (e-mail: eharris{at}berkeley.edu).

Received for publication January 16, 2009. Accepted for publication March 23, 2009.

Dengue is a mosquito-borne viral disease that is a major public health problem worldwide. In 2004, the Pediatric Dengue Cohort Study was established in Managua, Nicaragua, to study the natural history and transmission of dengue in children. Here, the authors describe the study design, methods, and results from 2004 to 2008. Initially, 3,721 children 2–9 years of age were recruited through door-to-door visits. Each year, new children aged 2 years are enrolled in the study to maintain the age structure. Children are provided with medical care through the study, and data from each medical visit are recorded on systematic study forms. All participants presenting with suspected dengue or undifferentiated fever are tested for dengue by virologic, serologic, and molecular biologic assays. Yearly blood samples are collected to detect inapparent dengue virus infections. Numerous information and communications technologies are used to manage study data, track samples, and maintain quality control, including personal data assistants, barcodes, global information systems, and fingerprint scans. Close collaboration with the Nicaraguan Ministry of Health and use of almost entirely local staff are essential components for success. This study is providing critical data on the epidemiology and transmission of dengue in the Americas needed for future vaccine trials.

Central America; cohort studies; dengue; information systems; methods; Nicaragua

Abbreviations: CBC, complete blood count; DENV, dengue virus; GPS, global positioning system; HCSFV, Health Center Sócrates Flores Vivas; HIMJR, Hospital Infantil Manuel de Jesús Rivera; PDA, personal data assistant; RT-PCR, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.