Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are primary vectors of dengue, yellow fever, chikungunya and Zika viruses. Ae. aegypti is highly anthropophilic and relies nearly exclusively on human blood meals and habitats for reproduction. Socioeconomic factors may influence the spread of Ae. aegypti due to its close relationship with humans. This paper describes and summarizes the published literature on how socioeconomic variables influence the distribution of Ae. aegypti mosquitoes in the mainland United States. A comprehensive search of PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and EBSCO Academic Search Complete through June 12, 2019 was used to retrieve all articles published in English on the association of socioeconomic factors and the distribution of Ae. aegypti mosquitoes. Additionally, a hand search of mosquito control association websites was conducted in an attempt to identify relevant grey literature. Articles were screened for eligibility using the process described in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Initially, 3,493 articles were identified through the database searches and previously known literature. After checking for duplicates, 2,145 articles remained. 570 additional records were identified through the grey literature search for a total of 2,715 articles. These articles were screened for eligibility using their titles and abstracts, and 2,677 articles were excluded for not meeting the eligibility criteria. Finally, the full text for each of the remaining articles (n = 38) was read to determine eligibility. Through this screening process, 11 articles were identified for inclusion in this review. The findings for these 11 studies revealed inconsistent relationships between the studied socioeconomic factors and the distribution and abundance of Ae. aegypti. The findings of this review suggest a gap in the literature and understanding of the influence of anthropogenic factors on the distribution of Ae. aegypti that could hinder efforts to implement effective public health prevention and control strategies should a disease outbreak occur.
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Subject: Public Health and Healthcare - Health Policy and Services
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