A review paper authored by Sewwandi Bandara and colleagues from our laboratory, discussing the importance of causal inference for targeted public health interventions within the One Health framework, has been published in the Journal of Water and Health.
The One Health framework emphasizes the interconnection between human, animal, and environmental systems in shaping infectious disease dynamics. Based on this concept, the paper systematically reviews how various environmental, social, and economic determinants—specifically urbanization, climate change, land-use change, population mobility, and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH) conditions—interact to drive the transmission of infectious diseases.
The authors highlight that no single determinant independently drives disease transmission; rather, overlapping exposures and interactions create complex feedback loops that amplify public health vulnerabilities. While conventional approaches to assessing these factors have mostly been correlation-based, this paper strongly advocates for the integration of causal inference to move beyond simple associations and uncover the true cause-and-effect mechanisms.
By embedding causal reasoning within the One Health framework, it becomes possible to strengthen evidence-based policy and support the design of targeted, context-specific, and resilient public health interventions aimed at reducing the burden of infectious diseases.
Causal inference for targeted public health interventions: interactions among environmental, social, and economic determinants within the one health framework
Sewwandi Bandara, Wakana Oishi, Mohan Amarasiri, Tomonori Nochi, Mayuko Saito, Aya A. Mitani, Thanh H. Nguyen, and Daisuke Sano
Journal of Water and Health, 24(6), 759 – 772, 2026.
This study was supported by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED), under Grant No. JP20wm0125001 and JST SPRING under Grant Number JPMJSP2114.
