The Effects of Global Climate Change on Water-related Disease Ecology

Abstract

Water-related diseases remain a culprit in the deaths and illnesses of hundreds of thousands of people each year, particularly those living in developing countries. The possibility that climate change and its meteorological effects affect water-related disease transmission ecology makes the need for review and surveillance of such pathogens vital in order to reduce public health burden. In this review, an overview of climate change and its general effects on public health is conducted, with a secondary, targeted review administered to examine the potential effects of climate change on a number of water-related pathogens. Resultantly, a number of known water-related pathogens that present risks to populations currently, including diarrheal illnesses, leptospirosis, and Guinea-worm were examined in concert with results from studies undertaken to understand the effects of climate change on each specific pathogen. The risk to populations was determined to be greatest in underdeveloped countries, where drinking water infrastructure is typically either shoddily constructed or nonexistent. Furthermore, in this review, I highlight the importance of continued global surveillance of drinking water infrastructure and water-related disease ecology in order to mitigate potential problems that could be caused by a changing climate. The disease burden of water-related infections is exacerbated by socioeconomic factors in many countries and ensuring adequate drinking water infrastructure is perhaps the greatest step that can be taken currently to decrease morbidity as continuous changes to the climate lead to an uncertain epidemiological future.