A mathematical model for co-dynamics of listeriosis and bacterial meningitis diseases

Abstract

The co-infection of Listeriosis and Meningitis in humans is a public health burden globally with its endemicity mostly felt in the tropical and sub-tropical countries. In this study, we develop a novel deterministic model describing the Listeriosis-Meningitis co-infection dynamics. Two sub-models, namely the Listeriosis-only and Meningitis-only sub-models are presented and analysed. Mathematical analysis of each sub-model is carried out, as well as that of the co-infection model. We use Latin-hypercube sampling to determine the parameters affecting the severity of the infection co-dynamics. Results from the numerical simulations suggest that reduction in the Listeria pathogens in the environment and an increase in the Meningitis recovery rate decreases the rate of Listeriosis-Meningitis co-infections.