Priority areas for research in communicable diseases

Abstract

Developing countries in Asia are at high risk for new and emerging infectious diseases and have become hotspot for many zoonoses, drug-resistant pathogens and vectorborne diseases. Better understanding of the epidemiology of and the broader social, economic, cultural, environmental, ecological and political dimensions are some of the challenges for today's research in communicable diseases. Research is essential for the development of new tools and interventions, and should be geared towards the development of evidence-based policies and interventions to increase efficiency and effectiveness of programme development and management of health promotion and diseases prevention and control. The need for research as a part of strategic information and evidence base for scaling up and sustaining of interventions that work, cannot be underestimated. Besides old challenges, research should address new challenges such as climate change and its impact on health. This document is a compilation of views of several leading experts on research priorities in field of communicable diseases.