Abstract
This paper proposes an impulsive control scheme for a complex network that helps reduce the spread of two epidemic diseases: influenza type A and COVID-19. Both are respiratory infections; thus, they have a similar form of transmission, and it is possible to use the same control scheme in both study cases. The objective of this work is to use neural impulsive inverse optimal pinning control for complex networks to reduce the effects of propagation. The dynamic model is considered unknown, for which we design a neural identifier that, through training using the extended Kalman filter algorithm, provides the appropriate nonlinear model for this complex network. The dynamics of the network nodes are represented by the Susceptible-Infected-Removed (SIR) compartmental model in their discrete form. The results of the simulations are presented and addressed, applying the same control scheme but with different parameter values for each case study.