Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy European Union Reference Laboratory for Parasites (EURLP), Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
Spinello Antinori
Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy III Division of Infectious Diseases, ASST Fatebenefratelli Sacco, Milan, Italy Italian Society for Infectious and Tropical Diseases (SIMIT), Prato, Italy
Alessandro Bartoloni
Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy Infectious and Tropical Diseases Unit, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy
Stefano D'Amelio
Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
Albis Francesco Gabrielli
Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
Giovanni Gazzoli
Italian Association Amici di Raoul Follereau (AIFO), Bologna, Italy
Laura Rinaldi
Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
Department of Translational Research, N.T.M.S., School of Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy Italian Society of Parasitology (SoIPa), c/o Department of Public Health, Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy
IN-NTD network
Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) as a diverse group of primarily infectious diseases, which disproportionately affect poor and marginalized populations worldwide. In this context, NTDs are responsible for important morbidity and mortality and justify a global response. Moreover, NTDs are relatively neglected by research and development as well as by funding, if compared with the magnitude of the public health problem they represent. This happens even though, unlike other infectious diseases, they can be prevented, controlled and eliminated by targeted public health interventions. NTDs are mainly prevalent in communities from low-income countries in tropical and sub-tropical areas but are also present in upper–middle-income countries, including several in Europe. Here, we provide an update on the most relevant parasitic endemic or imported NTDs in Italy and illustrate the rationale for the establishment of the Italian network on NTDs, an alliance of scientific societies, institutes, foundations, universities and non-profit organizations united to fight NTDs.
