Comparing the timeliness of three types of influenza surveillance data in mainland China / 中华疾病控制杂志

Objective To evaluate the timeliness of the three sets of influenza surveillance data (influenza reported cases from Nationwide Notifiable Infectious Diseases Reporting Information System (NIDRIS), influenza-like illness consultation rate (ILI%) and influenza virus positive rate from Chinese Influenza Surveillance Information System) in mainland China. Methods The three sets of influenza surveillance data of North and South China from 2017 to 2018 were compared using peak comparison, cross correlation and Early Aberration Reporting System C3 method. Results The influenza epidemic trends reflected by the three sets of influenza surveillance weekly data from 2017 to 2018 were generally consistent and significantly correlated. However, the three sets of data had different timeliness. From 2017 to 2018, ILI% in the North was not timely at alarming the first epidemic peak, which was 6 weeks and 9 weeks later than influenza cases from NIDRIS and positive rate of influenza virus respectively. While in the South, ILI% was the most sensitive indicator, which was 4 weeks and 7 weeks earlier than influenza cases from NIDRIS and positive rate of influenza virus respectively. However, the three sets of data had little difference in the timeliness of the second epidemic peak both in the North and South. Conclusions The three sets of influenza surveillance data in mainland China could all roughly reflected the epidemic trend of influenza. After comparing the timeliness, a combination of influenza reported cases from NIDRIS together with ILI% and influenza virus positive rate could improve timeliness and accuracy for early warning of influenza.

Applications of statistical models on surveillance data in ecological study / 中华流行病学杂志

In recent years, with the improvement of various surveillance network, surveillance system has become an important data source for ecological study. Different data types, including cross-sectional data, time series data and panel data, containing abundant information involving exposure, outcome and confoundings. Gradually, some new statistical methods have been developed or improved for the special structural characteristics of surveillance data. In this paper, we summarized the principles of these models, preconditions, as well as their advantages and limitations.

Epidemiology of tuberculosis in Papua New Guinea: analysis of case notification and treatment-outcome data, 2008–2016

@#Papua New Guinea has strengthened its surveillance system for tuberculosis (TB) under the National TB Program. This paper provides an overview of TB surveillance data at the national and subnational levels from 2008 to 2016. TB case notification has consistently increased since 2008 with 6184 cases (93 per 100 000 population) in 2008 to 28 598 (359 per 100 000 population) in 2014 and has stabilized since 2014 with 28 244 cases (333 per 100 000 population) in 2016. The population-screening rate for TB rose from 0.1% in 2008 to 0.4% in 2016. Notified cases were dominated by extra-pulmonary TB (EP-TB, 42.4% of all cases in 2016). The proportion of pulmonary TB cases with no sputum test results was high with a national average of 26.6%. The regional variation of case notifications was significant: the Southern Region had the highest number and rate of notified TB cases. Of the nationally reported cases, 26.7% occurred in children. Treatment success rates remained low at 73% for bacteriologically confirmed TB and 64% for all forms of TB in 2016, far below the global target of 90%. For all forms of TB, 19% of patients were lost to follow-up from treatment. An analysis of TB data from the national surveillance system has highlighted critical areas for improvement. A low population-screening rate, a high proportion of pulmonary TB cases without sputum test results and a low treatment success rate suggest areas for improvement in the National TB Program. Our additional subnational analysis helps identify geographical and programmatic areas that need strengthening and should be further promoted to guide the programme’s direction in Papua New Guinea.

National Infectious Diseases Surveillance data of South Korea / 한국역학회지

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) operate infectious disease surveillance systems to monitor national disease incidence. Since 1954, Korea has collected data on various infectious diseases in accordance with the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act. All physicians (including those working in Oriental medicine) who diagnose a patient with an infectious disease or conduct a postmortem examination of an infectious disease case are obliged to report the disease to the system. These reported data are incorporated into the database of the National Infectious Disease Surveillance System, which has been providing web-based real-time surveillance data on infectious diseases since 2001. In addition, the KCDC analyzes reported data and publishes the Infectious Disease Surveillance Yearbook annually.