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Quantiative Study of Major Historic Epidemics and Transitions to longer, healthier lives

Objective

Only 150 years ago, one in five Europeans died in infancy, life expectancy was 40 years, and the leading causes of death were infectious diseases: tuberculosis, smallpox, measles, pertussis, diphtheria, cholera, typhoid fever, scarlet fever. But in just a few decades beginning about 1880, life expectancy rose dramatically as infectious disease mortality plummeted. This “2nd epidemiologic transition”, in which chronic diseases began replacing infections as leading causes of death, occurred well in advance of antibiotics and most vaccines. Many factors have been proposed to explain it, including improved nutrition, sanitation, clean drinking water, better housing and the emergence of social support systems.

Little has been done, however, to systematically rescue and quantitatively study historic health data and rigorously investigate the epidemiologic transition. I lay out here an ambitious, novel, interdisciplinary and feasible proposal to do just that. In the process, I will broaden my research scope from statistical modeling of historic pandemic influenza to all historic infections, understand the historical context in which the transition occurred, and master new concepts in dynamic disease modeling. Danish historic medical data are uniquely detailed and reach far back in time, and are uniquely suited for quantitative studies of long time series of morbidity and mortality, with the promise to further illuminate the epidemiology of important diseases including smallpox, cholera, and measles.

After 25 years abroad as a senior researcher at the National Institutes of Health and Professor of Global Health in the U.S. I now wish to return to my native Denmark. I had the honor this year to be elected to the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters, and receive funding to be a visiting professor at the University of Copenhagen, and trust this signals the beginning of my successful re-integration to European academia.

Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

MSCA-IF-EF-RI - RI – Reintegration panel

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2014

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Coordinator

KOBENHAVNS UNIVERSITET
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 212 194,80
Address
NORREGADE 10
1165 KOBENHAVN
Denmark

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Region
Danmark Hovedstaden Byen København
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 212 194,80
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