Modelling and analysis of options for controlling persistent infectious diseases (11w5133)

The Banff International Research Station will host the "Modelling and analysis of options for controlling persistent infectious diseases" workshop from February 27 to March 4, 2011.

Much attention today is directed to the scourges of newly emerging pathogens, and methods for their control. There remain, however, a resilient set of agents that have managed to cause high levels of mortality and morbidity in human populations for centuries. The only such "endemic" pathogen to have been eliminated by human efforts is smallpox, and the eradication of smallpox was a major achievement of the 20th century. We will gather a group of mathematicians and public health researchers to discuss and share ideas about a variety of endemic diseases (such as polio, measles, influenza, malaria, HIV, and West Nile Virus), with the aim of developing improved control strategies for these extremely important infections.

The Banff International Research Station for Mathematical Innovation and Discovery (BIRS) is a collaborative Canada-US-Mexico venture that provides an environment for creative interaction as well as the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and methods within the Mathematical Sciences, with related disciplines and with industry. The research station is located at The Banff Centre in Alberta and is supported by Canada's Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Alberta's Advanced Education and Technology, and Mexico's Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT).