Seasonal syndromic surveillance by sentinel system of ILI, ARI, SARI and pneumonia in Romania – season 2023/2024

Abstract

Syndromic surveillance was initially developed for early detection compared to traditional methods of an epidemiological event with an impact on public health, but as it was applied by more countries it was observed that it can provide information on the size, dynamics of the spread with an emphasis on the potential for national, regional and global evolution, the severity and the most affected population groups, but also to the development of a quick, specific response. Globalization, which involves the intensification of the movement of people (including sick or incubating infectious diseases), live animals, or products of animal origin in and from any part of the planet, but also climate change and pollution, amplifies the danger of the spread of communicable infectious diseases from areas so-called “specific” diseases in new areas, unknown to populations and healthcare systems. In this context, the One Health initiative needs efficient surveillance methods to help promote the health of people, animals, the environment, and ultimately the planet Earth. Recently, there have been substantial changes in the surveillance and control of infectious diseases with an impact on public health aimed at assessing the risks of the emergence of infectious agents with epidemic and pandemic potential by identifying and analyzing favorable factors related to the infectious agent (virulence, variability, transmissibility, etc.), the host organism (immunity, physiological factors, vaccination status, associated chronic diseases, nutritional status, living conditions, etc.), demographic factors (birth rate, mortality, population agglomerations), climatic factors and insect populations vectors, rodents and wild animals (including birds) and last but not least domestic animal populations (including birds). Among these methods, syndromic surveillance stands out, which in addition has the quality of using automatic data acquisition and generating statistical alerts, monitors disease indicators in real-time or near real-time to detect disease outbreaks earlier than would be possible with conventional methods traditional public health. In this context, we will present the Romanian experience regarding the syndromic surveillance of ILI, ARI and SARI in Romania through the national sentinel system season 2023/2024.