SYSTEMATIC ANALYSIS Global Role and Burden of Influenza in Pediatric Respiratory Hospitalizations, 1982–2012 PLoS Medicine
"Systematic surveillance and testing for influenza among hospitalized children has expanded globally over the past decade. However, only a fraction of the data has been used to estimate influenza burden. In this analysis, we use surveillance data [drawn from 350 sites in 60 countries] to provide an estimate of influenza-associated hospitalizations among children worldwide. ... Our findings expand knowledge of the impact of severe influenza among children <1 and <5 y, and create an evidence base for both younger (<6 mo) and older (5–17 y) children, for whom, to our knowledge, no global estimates of influenza disease burden have been published to date."
STUDY Impact of pharmacists as immunizers on influenza vaccination coverage in Nova Scotia, Canada Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
"Immunization coverage in Canada has continued to fall below national goals. The addition of pharmacists as immunizers may increase immunization coverage. This study aimed to compare estimated influenza vaccine coverage before and after pharmacists began administering publicly funded influenza immunizations in Nova Scotia, Canada."
SURVEILLANCE Google Flu Trends in Canada: a comparison of digital disease surveillance data with physician consultations and respiratory virus surveillance data, 2010–2014 Epidemiology and Infection
"The value of Google Flu Trends (GFT) remains unclear after it overestimated the proportion of physician visits related to influenza-like illness in the United States in 2012–2013. However, GFT estimates have not been examined nationally in Canada nor compared with positivity for respiratory viruses other than influenza ... [We] compared GFT estimates for Canada to Public Health Agency of Canada influenza-like illness consultation rates and to positivity for influenza A and B, respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus, and rhinoviruses."
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