Integrated, Secure and Sustainable Disease Surveillance System in Uzbekistan: Aspects of Laboratory Research Networks

Abstract

Epidemiological analysis by the WHO showed that the spread of infectious diseases in all Central Asia states, including Uzbekistan have worsen. Uzbekistan is one of the most populated Central Asian countries with 25 million people, approximately 70% of whom live in rural areas. Many infectious diseases are spread from animal sources. In Uzbekistan, rotavirus, coroavirus, parovavirus, herpes virus, enterovirus infections, and brucellosis, anthrax, foot and mouth diseases, salmonellosis, kolibacteriosis, plaque diseases and others are wide spread. Epidemiological monitoring and the measures systematically undertaken by the local health service ensure a stable level of morbidity for the first and second groups of infectious diseases. Natural breeding grounds for infectious diseases such as plague, anthrax, and brucellosis and others in the arbovirus-group infections like the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF), tick-borne encephalitis (TBE), and fever syndromes of unknown origin dictate the need for more in-depth and comprehensive study in a cross section of every region in Uzbekistan. In October 2003 within the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program (CTR) and the Biological Weapons Proliferation Prevention Program (BWPPP) sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense, a program began to establish an Integrated, Secure and Sustainable Disease Surveillance System in Uzbekistan. Main goals of this project are: detect deliberate or accidental release of biological materials relevant to the bioterror threat; create, strengthen and integrate existing surveillance systems; facilitate integration of host nation scientists and institutes into the international scientific community; and to create a potential to integrate national surveillance systems into an international system. Key elements of the project are modern, standardized, reliable diagnostics methods, e.g. PCR-based diagnostics; improved communications, transport, and integration, e.g. computerization; data analysis and sharing. We plan to select optimal prototypes of worldwide known Laboratory Research Networks and contribute new sophisticated methods of available data analysis.