Pengxin Zhang, Shuhan Yang, Shaoqing Dai, Darren How Jin Aik, Shujuan Yang, Peng Jia
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引用次数: 3
Abstract
Although two years have passed since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, various variants are still rampant across the globe. The Omicron variant, in particular, is rapidly gained dominance through its ability to spread. In this study, we elucidated the spatial distribution pattern of Omicron from a global perspective. We used the cumulative number of notified COVID-19 cases per country spanning four weeks up to February 10, 2022, and the proportion of the Omicron variant genomic sequences from the Global Initiative on Sharing Avian Influenza Data (GISAID). The global spatial distribution of Omicron was investigated by analyzing Global & Local Moran's I and Getis- Ord General G. The spatial weight matrix was defined by combining K-Nearest neighbour and flight connectivity between countries. The results showed that the epidemic is relatively severe in Europe, countries with a high number of Omicron cases and incidence tended to be clustered spatially. In contrast, there are relatively fewer Omicron cases in Asia and Africa, with few hotspots identified. Furthermore, some noted spatial outliers, such as a lowvalue area surrounded by high-value areas, deserve special attention. This study has improved our awareness of the global distribution of Omicron. The findings can provide helpful information for deploying targeted epidemic preparedness for the subsequent COVID-19 variant and future epidemics.
2019冠状病毒病(COVID-19)爆发已经过去两年了,但在全球范围内,各种变体仍然猖獗。特别是欧米克隆变体,通过其传播能力迅速获得优势地位。在这项研究中,我们从全球角度阐明了Omicron的空间分布格局。我们使用了截至2022年2月10日的四周内每个国家通报的COVID-19病例的累计数量,以及来自全球共享禽流感数据倡议(GISAID)的Omicron变异基因组序列的比例。通过分析global & Local Moran’s I和Getis- Ord General g,研究Omicron的全球空间分布,结合k近邻和国家间航班连通性定义空间权重矩阵。结果表明,欧洲地区疫情较为严重,Omicron病例高发国家呈空间聚集性趋势。相比之下,亚洲和非洲的欧米克隆病例相对较少,几乎没有确定的热点。此外,一些值得注意的空间异常值,如被高价值区域包围的低价值区域,值得特别注意。这项研究提高了我们对欧米克隆在全球分布的认识。这些发现可以为针对随后的COVID-19变体和未来的流行病部署有针对性的流行病防范提供有用的信息。
期刊介绍:
The focus of the journal is on all aspects of the application of geographical information systems, remote sensing, global positioning systems, spatial statistics and other geospatial tools in human and veterinary health. The journal publishes two issues per year.