The influence of meteorology on the spread of influenza: survival analysis of an equine influenza (A/H3N8) outbreak.

ABSTRACT: The influences of relative humidity and ambient temperature on the transmission of influenza A viruses have recently been established under controlled laboratory conditions. The interplay of meteorological factors during an actual influenza epidemic is less clear, and research into the contribution of wind to epidemic spread is scarce. By applying geostatistics and survival analysis to data from a large outbreak of equine influenza (A/H3N8), we quantified the association between hazard of infection and air temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, and wind velocity, whilst controlling for premises-level covariates. The pattern of disease spread in space and time was described using extraction mapping and instantaneous hazard curves. Meteorological conditions at each premises location were

SUBMITTER: Firestone SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3335077 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature