Influenza + outbreaks 5 - 7 Flashcards
What is the definition of an outbreak?
An epidemic limited to localised increase in the incidence of a disease e.g. in a village, town or closed institution
2 or more persons with the same disease or symptoms or orgnanism isolated from a diagnostic sample who are linked through common exposure, personal characteristics, time or location
Greater than expected rate of infection compared with the usual background rate for the particular place and time
What are the components of an outbreak investigation?
Prevention Surveillance/monitoring Detection Outbreak investigation Specific control interventions
What is the infectious disease epidemiology framework comprised of?
Reservoir/source Portal of exit Mode of transmission Portal of entry Susceptible host
What is direct transmission?
Touch (Ebola)
Respiratory (Influenza)
Faecal-oral (polio)
What is indirect transmission?
Faecal-oral (contaminated water)
Blood borne (HIV)
Airborne (influenza)
Vector borne (malaria)
What are methods in identifying a potential outbreak?
Report from clinician or laboratory
Report from a patient or member of public
Routine surveillance systems
Media reports
Which organisations are responsible for communicable disease surveillance?
PHE
ECDC = European Centre for DIsease Prevention and Control
WHO
What are the 2 types of surveillance?
Passive = routine systems which rely on clinicians remembering to send in a case report or returns from laboratories Active = Surveillance team actively seeks out reports e.g. an outbreak inestigation
What is the purpose of surveillance?
Time
Purpose
Place
What are the different epidemic curves?
Point or common source (one single peak) Continuing source (multiple peaks) Propagated source (infections occur over several incubation periods) Mixed source (multiple peaks e.g. cholera)
What can be done in an environmental investigation?
Environmental samples may identify or confirm the organism/agent and its source eg. food, water, soil
Environmental Health Department of Local Authority is responsible for this in England and Wales
What are the control measures formed by Public Health Act 1984; Public Health Infectious Disease Regulations 1988?
Aimed at reducing the spread of infection Safe Effective Appropriate to the risk Timely
What are the challenges during the outbreak investigation process?
Rapid response Multi-disciplinary working Case ascertainment Lack of resources Difficulty contacting cases to collect information Lack of environmental samples Lack of options for control activity Working with the media Risk communication Legal implications
What is the historical significance of influenza pandemics?
1918-1919 influenza pandemic - clinical disease in one third of the world’s population; total estimated deaths: 50-100 million
Complicated, severe and fatal cases increased with time
Human flu strains now dominated by its descendants
Why did the 1918-19 influenza pandemic kill so many young adults?
WW1 - Giant petri dish; transmission and global displacement of people
Working age population
Robust response associated with increased severity
New technologies e.g. trains - increased migration - around 10 million deaths in India and bicycles and roads attributed to transmission in Africa