International Journal of Epidemiology, Vol 28, 550-557, Copyright © 1999 by International Epidemiological Association
E Massad, MN Burattini and NR Ortega
BACKGROUND: The State of Sao Paulo, the most populous in Brazil, was
virtually free of measles from 1987 until the end of 1996 when the number
of cases started to rise. It reached alarming numbers in the middle of 1997
and local health authorities decided to implement a mass vaccination
campaign. METHODS: Fuzzy Decision Making techniques are applied to the
design of the vaccination campaign. RESULTS: The mass vaccination strategy
chosen changed the natural course of the epidemic. It had a significant
impact on the epidemic in the metropolitan area of Sao Paulo city, but a
second epidemic in the State's interior forced the public health
authorities to implement a second mass vaccination campaign 2 months after
the first. CONCLUSIONS: Fuzzy Logic techniques are a powerful tool for the
design of control strategies against epidemics of infectious diseases.
ARTICLES
Fuzzy logic and measles vaccination: designing a control strategy
School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil.
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