A general solution for the epidemic with carriers (Q1078113)

The authors consider a Markovian model for the closed carrier-borne epidemic, which generalizes the model proposed by \textit{G. H. Weiss}, Biometrics 21, 481-490 (1965), in that the infection rate may be an arbitrary function of the numbers of susceptibles and carriers. Using matrix-geometric methods, an explicit recursion formula is obtained for the Laplace transforms of the transition probabilities. As an application, Weiss' formula for the extinction probabilities in his model is derived.