Many people living in tropical settings in the developing world are burdened with neglected infectious diseases which remain unaddressed by the health sector. This study conducted baseline and follow-up surveys on a cohort of 900 children of Tuvalu to determine the prevalence and scope of skin infections and intestinal parasites; as well as cross-sectional survey of multiple sites in Timor-Leste. \ud
\ud
Results indicated a high prevalence of infectious disease, especially skin infections in both countries with many participants presenting with multiple infections. Scabies and scabies co-infection with secondary bacterial or fungal diseases were the most common presentations in both populations. Intestinal parasites were present in 67% of the children surveyed in Tuvalu where one third of this cohort also had anaemia and abnormal urine results. \ud
\ud
Overall these communities show a high burden of co-morbidity, the impact of which is unknown. However, the high proportion of multiple infectious diseases along with the clinical evidence suggests a negative health impact on these populations, which could benefit from multiple interventions in an integrated community-bases disease control programme
