Metapopulation Dynamics of Infectious Diseases

This chapter uses extensive data sets and realistic dynamic models to discuss the metapopulation dynamics of infectious disease. Because of the dual spatial scales of regulation, an extended metapopulation paradigm is central to infectious disease dynamics in two important ways. First, the metapopulation approach can help researchers understand disease dynamics at different spatial scales. Second, there are important conceptual insights into the eradication of infections by vaccination to be gained from studies of the persistence of metapopulations. This chapter therefore explores two main topics: the analogies between the disciplines of ecology and epidemiology at the metapopulation level, and how the metapopulation theory can help understand the epidemiological dynamics. It discusses these issues by using a set of detailed models and high-resolution space-time data of disease incidence.