An Assessment of the Relationship Between Population Density and the Incidence of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever

Abstract

Background: Dengue is a leading cause of severe illness and hospitalization in Vietnam. This study aims to assess the relationship between population density and dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) in August 2023 in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam. Methods: Exploratory data analysis (EDA) techniques were first applied to investigate the distribution patterns of DHF incidence. It will go on to use Getis Ord statistic to detect hotspots and coldspots of DHF infection rates. A scatter plot will be then employed to quantitatively assess the relationship between population density and DHF infection rates and Getis Ord statistic. Finally, a dataset of DHF cases reported in August 2023 in Ho Chi Minh city was used to illustrate the proposed methods. Results: It was found that high values of Getis Ord coefficients was mainly concentrated in the east and west of the city. There was a negative correlation between population density and both variables (DHF infection rates and Getis Ord statistic). The population density likely decreases dengue hemorrhagic fever infection rates in August in Ho Chi Minh city. Conclusions: It can be concluded that spatial statistics and EDA have proved their effectiveness in the assessment of the relationship between population density and the incidence of dengue hemorrhagic fever. Findings of this study provide an insight into the effects of population density on DHF infection rates. Keywords: Relationship assessment, Population density, Spatial autocorrelation analysis, Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Infection rate, Ho Chi Minh city.