Applications of Spatial Science and Technology in Health Research

Dear Colleagues,

Infectious diseases have a significant impact on global health and have added to the existing high chronic disease burden, with a recent example being the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19).

Spatial lifecourse epidemiology has been emerging in the era of big data growth and rapid developments in geoinformation technology (mainly geospatial models, software tools, Earth observation, geographical information systems). It is a rapidly growing approach employed to investigate the long-term effects of environmental, behavioural, psychosocial, and biological factors on health-related states and events and their underlying mechanisms.

The emergence of spatial lifecourse epidemiology has been calling for efforts from geospatial science to provide long-term spatial data and advanced spatial methods for revolutionizing traditional epidemiological research in addressing both infectious and chronic disease issues. The growth in the geoinformation sector, combined with the continuous availability of new geospatial epidemiological data, has resulted in increasing interest in developing innovative methods in spatial data analysis, software tools, and relevant platforms. Their availability provides important support in analyzing characteristics of infectious diseases analysis and in taking robust public health measures aiming at improving our health and wellbeing. As a result, geoinformation is being used in the domain of spatial (lifecourse) epidemiology to address questions relating to the geographic distribution of infectious diseases, their properties, and how to control their impact on society.

For this Special Issue, we invite contributions focusing on state-of-the-art research on spatial (lifecourse) epidemiology with a particular focus on the application of geoinformation and geospatial data analysis technologies. We seek submissions of original research and review articles on spatial (lifecourse) epidemiology on infectious and chronic diseases, including but not limited to diseases such COVID-19, influenza, cholera, tuberculosis, Zika virus, and Ebola. The submissions may cover any of the following topics:

• Spatial patterns of infectious diseases through quantitative analysis such as geostatistical analysis methods
• Prediction models of spatiotemporal transmission trends
• Datasets and databases handling epidemiological data
• Innovative tools and platforms in the analysis of epidemiological data
• Impact of community interventions on epidemiology driven by socioeconomic factors
• Relationships of environmental, socioeconomic, and/or pollution factors with infectious diseases
• Advances in the use of geoinformation in the study of infectious diseases.

Prof. Dr. Peng Jia
Dr. Yansong Bao
Topic Editors