Rabies virus (RABV) is a deadly zoonosis that circulates in wild carnivore populations in North America. Intensive management within the USA and Canada has been conducted to control the spread of the raccoon (Procyon lotor) variant of RABV and work towards elimination. We examined RABV occurrence across the northeastern USA and southeastern Québec, Canada during 2008–2018 using a multi-method, dynamic occupancy model. Using a 10 km × 10 km grid overlaid on the landscape, we examined the probability that a grid cell was occupied with RABV and relationships with management activities (oral rabies vaccination (ORV) and trap-vaccinate-release efforts), habitat, neighbour effects and temporal trends. We compared raccoon RABV detection probabilities between different surveillance samples (e.g. animals that are strange acting, road-kill, public health samples). The management of RABV through ORV was found to be the greatest driver in reducing the occurrence of rabies on the landscape. Additionally, RABV occupancy declined further with increasing duration of ORV baiting programmes. Grid cells north of ORV management were at or near elimination ($\hat{\psi }_{{\rm north}}$ = 0.00, s.e. = 0.15), managed areas had low RABV occupancy ($\hat{\psi }_{{\rm managed}}$ = 0.20, s.e. = 0.29) and enzootic areas had the highest level of RABV occupancy ($\hat{\psi }_{{\rm south}}$ = 0.83, s.e. = 0.06). These results provide evidence that past management actions have been being successful at the goals of reducing and controlling the raccoon variant of RABV. At a finer scale we also found that vaccine bait type and bait density impacted RABV occupancy. Detection probabilities varied; samples from strange acting animals and public health had the highest detection rates. Our results support the movement of the ORV zone south within the USA due to high elimination probabilities along the US border with Québec. Additional enhanced rabies surveillance is still needed to ensure elimination is maintained.

Measles eradication efforts have been successful at achieving elimination in many countries worldwide. Such countries actively work to maintain this elimination by continuing to improve coverage of two routine doses of measles vaccine following measles elimination. While improving measles vaccine coverage is always beneficial, we show, using a steady-state analysis of a dynamical model, that the correlation between populations receiving the first and second routine dose also has a significant impact on the population immunity achieved by a specified combination of first and second dose coverage. If the second dose is administered to people independently of whether they had the first dose, high second-dose coverage improves the proportion of the population receiving at least one dose, and will have a large effect on population immunity. If the second dose is administered only to people who have had the first dose, high second-dose coverage reduces the rate of primary vaccine failure, but does not reach people who missed the first dose; this will therefore have a relatively small effect on population immunity. When doses are administered dependently, and assuming the first dose has higher coverage, increasing the coverage of the first dose has a larger impact on population immunity than does increasing the coverage of the second. Correlation between vaccine doses has a significant impact on the level of population immunity maintained by current vaccination coverage, potentially outweighing the effects of age structure and, in some cases, recent improvements in vaccine coverage. It is therefore important to understand the correlation between vaccine doses as such correlation may have a large impact on the effectiveness of measles vaccination strategies.

Practical diagnostic tools of sufficient sensitivity to detect levels of infection that can lead to transmission have been identified as a critical component of successful disease elimination programmes. In this review we describe the diagnostic tests currently available for six neglected tropical diseases that have been targeted for elimination; assess their performance in the light of the requirements for surveillance, certification of elimination and post-elimination surveillance; consider the unmet need for diagnostic tests for these diseases; and review recent technical developments that could meet these needs.

Considering the epidemic situation of gambiense human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) at the end of the twentieth century, the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners strengthened disease control and surveillance. Over the last 15 years, the activities implemented through the National Control Programmes have brought gambiense HAT under control and now its elimination is deemed as an achievable goal. In 2012, WHO targeted gambiense HAT for elimination as a public health problem by 2020. The final goal will be the sustainable disease elimination by 2030, defined as the interruption of the transmission of gambiense HAT. The elimination is considered feasible, because of the epidemiological vulnerability of the disease, the current state of control, the availability of strategies and tools and international commitment and political will. Integration of activities in the health system is needed to ensure the sustainability of the elimination. The development of user-friendly diagnostic and treatment tools will facilitate the integration process. Adequate funding is needed to implement activities, but also to support research that will make the elimination sustainable. A long-term commitment by donors is needed and ownership of the process by endemic countries is critical.