WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza, VIDRL, North Melbourne, Vic. 3051, Australia.
Influenza Other Respir Viruses. 2013 Mar;7(2):211-24. doi: 10.1111/j.1750-2659.2012.0370a.x. Epub 2012 Apr 30.
Serological studies can detect infection with a novel influenza virus in the absence of symptoms or positive virology, providing useful information on infection that goes beyond the estimates from epidemiological, clinical and virological data. During the 2009 A(H1N1) pandemic, an impressive number of detailed serological studies were performed, yet the majority of serological data were available only after the first wave of infection. This limited the ability to estimate the transmissibility and severity of this novel infection, and the variability in methodology and reporting limited the ability to compare and combine the serological data.
To identify best practices for conduct and standardisation of serological studies on outbreak and pandemic influenza to inform public policy.
METHODS/SETTING: An international meeting was held in February 2011 in Ottawa, Canada, to foster the consensus for greater standardisation of influenza serological studies.
Best practices for serological investigations of influenza epidemiology include the following: classification of studies as pre-pandemic, outbreak, pandemic or inter-pandemic with a clearly identified objective; use of international serum standards for laboratory assays; cohort and cross-sectional study designs with common standards for data collection; use of serum banks to improve sampling capacity; and potential for linkage of serological, clinical and epidemiological data. Advance planning for outbreak studies would enable a rapid and coordinated response; inclusion of serological studies in pandemic plans should be considered.
Optimising the quality, comparability and combinability of influenza serological studies will provide important data upon emergence of a novel or variant influenza virus to inform public health action.
血清学研究可以在没有症状或病毒学阳性的情况下检测到新型流感病毒的感染，为感染提供了超越流行病学、临床和病毒学数据估计的有用信息。在 2009 年的 A(H1N1)大流行期间，进行了大量详细的血清学研究，但大多数血清学数据仅在感染的第一波之后可用。这限制了估计这种新型感染的传染性和严重程度的能力，方法和报告的多样性限制了比较和组合血清学数据的能力。
确定暴发和大流行流感血清学研究的最佳实践，为公共政策提供信息。
方法/设置：2011 年 2 月在加拿大渥太华举行了一次国际会议，以促进对流感血清学研究更大标准化的共识。
流感流行病学血清学调查的最佳实践包括以下内容：将研究分为大流行前、暴发、大流行或大流行后，并明确确定目标；使用国际血清标准进行实验室检测；队列和横断面研究设计，数据收集具有共同标准；使用血清库提高采样能力；以及血清学、临床和流行病学数据的潜在联系。对暴发研究进行提前规划将能够快速协调应对；应考虑将血清学研究纳入大流行计划。
优化流感血清学研究的质量、可比性和可组合性，将为新型或变异流感病毒出现时提供重要数据，为公共卫生行动提供信息。
