Open AccessEstimating influenza outpatients' and inpatients' incidences from 2009 to 2011 in a tropical urban setting in the P hilippines
Author(s) -
Tallo Veronica L.,
Kamigaki Taro,
Tan Alvin G.,
Pamaran Rochelle R.,
Alday Portia P.,
Mercado Edelwisa S.,
Javier Jenaline B.,
Oshitani Hitoshi,
Olveda Remigio M.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
influenza and other respiratory viruses
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.743
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1750-2659
pISSN - 1750-2640
DOI - 10.1111/irv.12223
Subject(s) - medicine , influenza like illness , incidence (geometry) , confidence interval , disease burden , public health , outpatient visits , influenza a virus , rate ratio , pediatrics , health care , disease , virus , virology , physics , nursing , optics , economics , economic growth
Objectives Although the public health significance of influenza in regions with a temperate climate has been widely recognized, information on influenza burden in tropical countries, including the P hilippines, remains limited. We aimed to estimate influenza incidence rates for both outpatients and inpatients then characterized their demographic features. Design An enhanced surveillance was performed from January 2009 to December 2011 in an urbanized highland city. The influenza‐like illness ( ILI ) surveillance involved all city health centers and an outpatient department of a tertiary government hospital. The severe acute respiratory infection (s ARI ) surveillance was also conducted with one government and four private hospitals since A pril 2009. Nasal and/or oropharyngeal swabs were collected and tested for influenza A, influenza B, and respiratory syncytial virus. Results and Conclusions We obtained 5915 specimens from 13 002 ILI cases and 2656 specimens from 10 726 s ARI cases throughout the study period. We observed year‐round influenza activity with two possible peaks each year. The overall influenza detection rate was 23% in the ILI surveillance and 9% in the s ARI surveillance. The mean annual outpatient incidence rate of influenza was 5·4 per 1000 individuals [95% confidence interval ( CI ), 1·83–12·7], and the mean annual incidence of influenza‐associated s ARI was 1·0 per 1000 individuals (95% CI , 0·03–5·57). The highest incidence rates were observed among children aged <5 years, particularly those aged 6–23 months. Influenza posed a certain disease burden among inpatients and outpatients, particularly children aged <5 years, in an urbanized tropical city of the P hilippines.