Christina Edholm

Be it the Ebola or Buruli ulcers, we are constantly informed about infectious diseases and the ramifications. We can combat infectious diseases using mathematics to gain insight into diseases dynamics and outbreaks. We will explore using two susceptible classes in epidemiological models. I concentrate on a model for Buruli Ulcers and then introduce a different model  focusing on Superspreaders.

Buruli Ulcers is a debilitating disease induced by Mycobacterium ulcerans. The transmission mechanism is not known at this time, but the bacteria is known to live in natural water environments. To understand the role of human contact with water environments in the spread of this disease, we formulate a model to emphasize the interaction between humans and the pathogen in a water environment. Therefore, we included two susceptible classes with one having more exposure to the water environment than the other in our system of differential equations. This work gives insight into the importance of various components of the mechanisms for transmission dynamics.