1887
Surveillance and outbreak reports Open Access
Like 0

Abstract

We provide an interim report on pandemic H1N1 influenza activity in South Africa, with a focus on the epidemiology and factors associated with deaths. Following the importation of the virus on 14 July 2009, and the epidemic peak during the week starting 3 August, the incidence in South Africa has declined. A total of 12,331 cases and 91 deaths have been laboratory-confirmed as of 12 October 2009. Age distribution and risk groups were similar to those observed elsewhere. The median age of patients who died (33.5 years) was significantly higher than that of the non-fatal cases (15.0 years, p<0.01). The most common underlying conditions among fatal cases were infection with human immunodeficiency virus (17/32 tested) and pregnancy (25/45 women of reproductive age). Active tuberculosis coinfection was present in seven of 72 fatal cases. These findings should be taken into consideration when planning vaccination strategies for 2010.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/10.2807/ese.14.42.19369-en
2009-10-22
2024-12-09
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/10.2807/ese.14.42.19369-en
Loading
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/eurosurveillance/14/42/art19369-en.htm?itemId=/content/10.2807/ese.14.42.19369-en&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah
Submit comment
Close
Comment moderation successfully completed
This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error