Bottom billion - neglected tropical diseases

"People in the bottom billion are the poorest in the world; they are often subsistence farmers, who essentially live on no money and are stuck in a poverty trap of disease, conflict, and no education. One of the most potent reinforcements of the poverty trap is the neglected tropical diseases. Almost everyone in the bottom billion has at least one of these diseases."

Hotez, P. J., Fenwick, A., Savioli, L., & Molyneux, D. H. (2009). Rescuing the bottom billion through control of neglected tropical diseases. Lancet, 373(9674), 1570-1575.

GWUMC's Peter Hotez is the first author on an article published in the May 2 issue of The Lancet. "Rescuing the bottom billion through control of neglected tropical diseases" outlines low-cost methods of controlling neglected tropical disease. The article describes:

• How neglected tropical diseases reinforce a cycle of poverty.
• Specific diseases and the geographic regions where they occur.
• Current availability of the drugs required to treat these diseases.

Image: Central Intelligence Agency (No Date). Political Map of the World. [Online image]. Retrieved May 7, 2009 from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/reference_maps/political_world.html.