Shult Peter A, Kirk Carol
Communicable Disease Division, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, 465 Henry Mall, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
WMJ. 2003;102(6):26-30.
Influenza poses a significant threat to public health worldwide. In the United States alone, mortality attributed to annual epidemics of influenza is estimated at 36,000 deaths per year. Influenza viruses also cause pandemics, during which the rates of illness and death can be expected to be much higher. In order to optimize prevention and control strategies for influenza, a variety of surveillance activities are carried out year-round internationally, nationally, and at the state level. This article summarizes relevant features of influenza and the surveillance activities carried out at each of these levels to monitor influenza activity. Particular emphasis is given to the state's laboratory-based surveillance network, developed and coordinated by the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, that features strong and productive partnerships with private sector clinicians and laboratories and that provides a solid foundation for surveillance directed at other public health threats such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and bioterrorism.
流感对全球公共卫生构成重大威胁。仅在美国，每年因流感流行导致的死亡人数估计就达3.6万。流感病毒还会引发大流行，在此期间，疾病和死亡率预计会高得多。为了优化流感的预防和控制策略，国际、国家和州层面全年都会开展各种监测活动。本文总结了流感的相关特征以及在上述各层面开展的监测活动，以监测流感活动情况。特别强调了由威斯康星州卫生实验室开发和协调的该州基于实验室的监测网络，该网络与私营部门临床医生和实验室建立了强大且富有成效的伙伴关系，为针对严重急性呼吸综合征和生物恐怖主义等其他公共卫生威胁的监测提供了坚实基础。
