Influenza surveillance in Australia: we need to do more than count

Laboratory-confirmed influenza is a nationally notifiable disease in Australia. According to notification data, Queensland has experienced more severe influenza seasons than other states and territories. However, this method ignores available denominator data: the number of laboratory tests performed. We propose that negative results of laboratory tests for influenza should be made notifiable, alongside laboratory-confirmed disease, and used to calculate the proportion of positive test results in real-time. Using data from the public health pathology services of three Australian states - Queensland Health laboratories, the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory and Western Australia's PathWest - for 2004 to 2008, we show that incorporating laboratory-negative test data into national surveillance data would add to and improve our understanding of influenza epidemiology.