Using an online survey of healthcare-seeking behaviour to estimate the magnitude and severity of the 2009 H1N1v influenza epidemic in England.

ABSTRACT:

Background

During the 2009 H1N1v influenza epidemic, the total number of symptomatic cases was estimated by combining influenza-like illness (ILI) consultations, virological surveillance and assumptions about healthcare-seeking behaviour. Changes in healthcare-seeking behaviour due to changing scientific information, media coverage and public anxiety, were not included in case estimates. The purpose of the study was to improve estimates of the number of symptomatic H1N1v cases and the case fatality rate (CFR) in England by quantifying healthcare-seeking behaviour using an internet-based survey carried out during the course of the 2009 H1N1v influenza epidemic.

Methods

We used an online survey that ran continuously from July 2009 to March 2010 to estimate the proportion of IL

SUBMITTER: Brooks-Pollock E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3073914 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature