Abstract
The coronavirus disease pandemic was declared in March 2020, as the southern hemisphere’s winter approached. Australia expected co-circulation of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, influenza and other seasonal respiratory viruses. However, influenza notifications were 7,029 (March–September) compared with an average 149,832 for the same period in 2015–2109, despite substantial testing. Restrictions on movement within and into Australia may have temporarily eliminated influenza. Other respiratory pathogens also showed remarkably changed activity in 2020.
Highlights
Sheena G Sullivan1, Sandra Carlson2, Allen C Cheng 3,4, Monique BN Chilver5, Dominic E Dwyer6, Melissa Irwin7, Jen Kok6, Kristine Macartney8,9, Jennifer MacLachlan10, Cara Minney-Smith11, David Smith11,12, Nigel Stocks5, Janette Taylor6, Ian G Barr13
2020, as southern hemisphere countries prepared for their usual winter respiratory pathogen epidemics
Among 10 influenza viruses (6.7% of all notified by diagnostic laboratory testing) received in August and September at the World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza in Melbourne, none could be confirmed as influenza by real-time RT-PCR or culture
Summary
Influenza is notifiable in Australia and notifications averaged around 2,000 cases per week from January to March 2020, with a precipitous drop between mid-March (week 11) and mid-April (week 14), when travel and work restrictions were introduced ILI sentinel surveillance detected just one influenza and three respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) cases among swabs tested from April to September. To enable total case finding for COVID-19, the threshold for respiratory virus testing has declined, with the broadening of case definitions and indications for testing, irrespective of the presence of symptoms. These minimal criteria may explain the very high percentage of detections positive for rhinovirus infection in NSW and WA since around week 22 (Figure 2). The drop in rhinovirus percentage-positivity around weeks 15–21 coincided with school holidays, 4-week school closures in NSW and voluntary withdrawal of children from school by many parents, underscoring the role of children in rhinovirus circulation [9]
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Schedule a callMore From: Euro surveillance : bulletin Europeen sur les maladies transmissibles = European communicable disease bulletin
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