Geospatial analysis of thalassemia patients’ prevalence in district Gujrat, Pakistan in 2015-2016
Paper Details
Geospatial analysis of thalassemia patients’ prevalence in district Gujrat, Pakistan in 2015-2016
Abstract
Using Geographical Information System health analysis measures can contribute to the profound understanding of health related issues and disease occurrence for public awareness and forecasting essential improvements. The present research was designed to determine the cluster analysis of thalassemia patients in Gujrat district. A purposive sample comprised 142 thalassemia major survivors was gathered conveniently from the main and only center for thalassemia in Gujrat district Punjab, Pakistan. After marking spatial location of their home addresses in a point shape file the data were analyzed using geographic information system (GIS) technology and spatial analysis techniques. Kernel density function in ArcMap 10.3 enabled to identify clusters of thalassemia patients in Gujrat district. The patient data reveals that 95% of all cases were between 05-20 years of age. Based on incidence density and spatial maps, the results of the study revealed that the major cluster of thalassemia patients is located in tehsil Gujrat, Moreover, relatively fewer clusters of patients are found in Tehsil Kharian and Sara-i-Alamgir. Currently, only one thalassemia center i.e. Sundas Foundation is functioning in district Gujrat. The methodology and the results of this study may be beneficial in developing an integrated system to monitor, control and prevent this disease.
Ahmad M, Mahmood A. 2013. Three Years Rolling Plan. District Gujrat. Retrieved from www.phsrp.punjab.gov.pk/downloads/3yrp/gujrat.docx.
Ahmad S, Saleem M, Modell B, Petrou M. 2002. Screening extended families for Genetic hemoglobin disorders in Pakistan. The New England Journal of Medicine 347(15), 1162–1168. http://dx.doi.org/10.1056/NEJMsa013234.
Baig SM, Azhar A, Hassan H, Baig JM, Kiyani A, Hameed U, Rabbi F, Bokhari0 H, Aslam M, Ud Din MA, Baig SA, Hassan K, Qureshi JA, Zaman T. 2006. Spectrum of beta-thalassemia mutations in various regions of Punjab and Islamabad, Pakistan: establishment of prenatal diagnosis. Haematologica, 13-15.
Clarke KC, McLafferty SL, Tempalski BJ. 1996. On epidemiology and geographic information systems: A review and discussion of future directions. Emerging Infectious Diseases 2(2), 85-92.
Din GU, Malik S, Ali I, Ahmed S, Dasti JI. 2014. Prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection among thalassemia patients: a perspective from a multi-ethnic population of Pakistan. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Medicine 7(1), S127-S133. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1995-7645(14)60218-2.
Eleftheriou A. 2003. About Thalassemia. Nicosia: Thalassemia International Federation.
Food and Agriculture Organization. 2014. United Nations land cover atlas of Pakistan – The Punjab Province. Retrieved from Web: http://www.glcn.org/downs/prj/pak/ pak_atlas_LCpunjab_2014.pdf.
Gesler W. 1986. The uses of spatial analysis in medical geography: a review. Social Science and Medicine 23, 963-973.
Government of Pakistan. 1998. District census report of District Gujrat: Population Census Organization, Statistics Division.
Grow K, Vashist M, Abrol P, Sharma S, Yadav R. 2014. Beta thalassemia in India: current status and the challenges ahead. International Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science 6, 28-33.
Hafeez M, Aslam M, Ali A, Rashid Y, Jafri H. 2007. Regional and ethnic distribution of beta thalassemia mutations and effect of consanguinity in patients referred for prenatal diagnosis. Journal of the College of Physicians and Surgeons–Pakistan. 17(3), 144-147. http://dx.doi.org/03.2007/JCPSP.144147.
Harteveld CL, Higgs DR. 2010. α-thalassemia. Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases 1-21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1750-1172-5-13.
Jetawattana S. 2005. Thalassemias, disorders of hemoglobin. Free Radicals in Biology and Medicine 77, 1-23.
Karsentg E, Leventhal A. 2002. Health geographic information systems (HGIS)-A tool for health planning and epidemiology. Harefuah 141, 1070-1075.
Khattak MF, Saleem M. 1992. Prevalence of heterozygous b-thalassemia in northern areas of pakistan. Journal of Pakistan Medical Association. 43, 42-44.
Leventhal B. 2002. Geodemographics in Robin J. Birn (ed.). The International Handbook of Market Research Techniques, 2ndedn. London: Kogan Page, p 103-25.
Moore DA, Carpenter TE. 1999. Spatial analytical methods and geographic information systems: Use in health research and epidemiology. Epidemiologic Reviews 21, 143-161.
Nikolaidia P, Xanthidis D. 2011. The distribution of medical facilities available for chronic disease patients through GIS visualization Case study: Central Macedonia, Northern Greece. Latest Advances in Information Science and Applications. 177-183.
Rezaee AR, Banoei MM, Khalili E, Houshmand M. 2012. Beta-thalassemia in Iran: new insight into the role of genetic admixture and migration. The Scientific World Journal 635183. http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/2012/635183.
Richards TB, Croner CM, Rushton G, Brown CK,Fowler L. 1999. Geographic information systems and public health: Mapping the future. Public Health Reports 114, 359-373.
Rytkönen MJ. 2004. Not all maps are equal: GIS and spatial analysis in epidemiology. International Journal of Circumpolar Health 63(1), 9-24.
Tao H, Qingyun D, Fu R, Shi L, Denan L, Jiajia L, Yan C. 2014. Spatial Analysis of the Home Addresses of Hospital Patients with Hepatitis B Infection or Hepatoma in Shenzhen, China from 2010 to 2012. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 11, 3143-3155. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph110303143.
Unit U. 2015. Gujrat city profile. Punjab cities improvement investment program. Retrieved from http://www.urbanunit.gov.pk/PublicationDocs/Punab%20city%20profiles/Gujrat%20City%20Profile.pdfon07.10.2015.
Weatherall DJ. 2010. The inherited diseases of hemoglobin are an emerging global health burden. Blood. 115, 4331-4336. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood-2010-01-251348.
Muhammad Ameer Nawaz Akram, Kanwal Javid (2020), Geospatial analysis of thalassemia patients’ prevalence in district Gujrat, Pakistan in 2015-2016; IJB, V16, N3, March, P1-11
https://innspub.net/geospatial-analysis-of-thalassemia-patients-prevalence-in-district-gujrat-pakistan-in-2015-2016/
Copyright © 2020
By Authors and International
Network for Natural Sciences
(INNSPUB) https://innspub.net
This article is published under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0