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Measles: how many hospitalised cases are we missing?
G Lawrence1, S Lambert, H Kelly
1Communicable Diseases Section, Department of Human Services, Victoria. glendal@chw.edu.au
Communicable Diseases Intelligence Quarterly Report
|October 13, 2001
Summary
The Victorian measles surveillance system missed some hospitalized measles cases. This highlights gaps in hospital staff awareness of reporting requirements for measles control.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Infectious Disease Epidemiology
- Health Surveillance Systems
Background:
- Measles surveillance is crucial for disease control and elimination efforts.
- Hospitalized cases represent a significant potential source of transmission.
- Understanding surveillance gaps is vital for optimizing public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the completeness of the Victorian measles surveillance system.
- To identify missed hospitalized measles cases during an inter-epidemic period.
- To evaluate hospital staff awareness of measles notification obligations.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the Victorian Inpatient Minimum Dataset (VIMD) from January 1997 to June 1998.
- Searched for ICD-9 discharge codes for measles (055).
- Compared VIMD data with the existing measles surveillance dataset and reviewed case notes for missed notifications.
Main Results:
- Identified 16 admissions (15 patients) with measles ICD-9 codes.
- Eight patients were not found in the surveillance dataset.
- One laboratory-confirmed and two clinically compatible measles cases were missed, indicating notification deficiencies.
Conclusions:
- The Victorian measles surveillance system demonstrated high completeness but identified missed cases.
- Hospital staff awareness of measles notification duties requires improvement.
- Addressing these gaps is essential for achieving measles elimination goals in Australia.