Influenza surveillance using data from a telemedicine centre

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Digital Health

Background:

• Traditional influenza surveillance relies on sentinel reporting systems.
• Timeliness and completeness of data can be challenges in traditional surveillance.
• Telemedicine offers a potential new data source for public health monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the utility of medical teleconsultation data for influenza surveillance.
• To compare teleconsultation data with established influenza surveillance reports.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of International Classification of Primary Care 2nd Edition (ICPC-2) codes from teleconsultations.
• Focus on ICPC-2 codes related to influenza-like symptoms, particularly fever.
• Comparison of teleconsultation data with weekly Swiss Sentinel influenza reports.

Main Results:

• ICPC-2 codes successfully reproduced seasonal influenza peaks for 2007/08, 2008/09, and 2009/10.
• Teleconsultation data revealed a higher early peak during the 2009 pandemic compared to Sentinel data.
• This suggests potential underreporting in the traditional Sentinel system during the 2009 pandemic.

Conclusions:

• Data from medical teleconsultations, utilizing ICPC-2 codes, enables real-time influenza surveillance.
• Teleconsultation data demonstrates strong correlation with the Swiss Sentinel surveillance system.
• This approach enhances the timeliness and potentially the accuracy of influenza monitoring.