Correction: Dengue seroprevalence and force of primary infection in a representative population of urban dwelling Indonesian children.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.

Dengue seroprevalence and force of primary infection in a representative population of urban dwelling Indonesian children.

Background: Indonesia reports the second highest dengue disease burden in the world; these data are from passive surveillance reports and are likely to be significant underestimates. Age-stratified seroprevalence data are relatively unbiased indicators of past exposure and allow understanding of transmission dynamics.

Methodology/principal Findings: To better understand dengue infection history and associated risk factors in Indonesia, a representative population-based cross-sectional dengue seroprevalence study was conducted in 1-18-year-old urban children.

Influenza and pregnancy: a review of the literature from India.

Maternal influenza infection is known to cause substantial morbidity and mortality among pregnant women and young children. Many professional healthcare bodies including the World Health Organization (WHO) have identified pregnant women as a priority risk group for receipt of inactivated seasonal influenza vaccination. However influenza prevention in this group is not yet a public health priority in India.

Aerosol transmission is an important mode of influenza A virus spread.

Influenza A viruses are believed to spread between humans through contact, large respiratory droplets and small particle droplet nuclei (aerosols), but the relative importance of each of these modes of transmission is unclear. Volunteer studies suggest that infections via aerosol transmission may have a higher risk of febrile illness. Here we apply a mathematical model to data from randomized controlled trials of hand hygiene and surgical face masks in Hong Kong and Bangkok households.

Global burden of respiratory infections due to seasonal influenza in young children: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: The global burden of disease attributable to seasonal influenza virus in children is unknown. We aimed to estimate the global incidence of and mortality from lower respiratory infections associated with influenza in children younger than 5 years.

Methods: We estimated the incidence of influenza episodes, influenza-associated acute lower respiratory infections (ALRI), and influenza-associated severe ALRI in children younger than 5 years, stratified by age, with data from a systematic review of studies published between Jan 1, 1995, and Oct 31, 2010, and 16 unpublished population-based studies.

A method for estimating vaccine-preventable pediatric influenza pneumonia hospitalizations in developing countries: Thailand as a case study.

The burden of influenza in children is increasingly appreciated; some middle-income countries are considering support for influenza vaccine programs. To support decision-making, methods to estimate the potential impact of proposed programs are needed. Using Thailand as a case-study, we present a model that uses surveillance data, published vaccine effectiveness estimates, and vaccination coverage assumptions to estimate the impact of influenza vaccination on pediatric influenza pneumonia hospitalizations.

Influenza virus contamination of common household surfaces during the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic in Bangkok, Thailand: implications for contact transmission.

Background: Rational infection control guidance requires an improved understanding of influenza transmission. We studied households with an influenza-infected child to measure the prevalence of influenza contamination, the effect of hand washing, and associations with humidity and temperature.

Methodology: We identified children with influenza and randomly assigned their households to hand washing and control arms.

Incidence, seasonality and mortality associated with influenza pneumonia in Thailand: 2005-2008.

Background: Data on the incidence, seasonality and mortality associated with influenza in subtropical low and middle income countries are limited. Prospective data from multiple years are needed to develop vaccine policy and treatment guidelines, and improve pandemic preparedness.

Methods: During January 2005 through December 2008, we used an active, population-based surveillance system to prospectively identify hospitalized pneumonia cases with influenza confirmed by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction or cell culture in 20 hospitals in two provinces in Thailand.

Severe human influenza infections in Thailand: oseltamivir treatment and risk factors for fatal outcome.

Background: Influenza is often not recognized as an important cause of severe or fatal disease in tropical and subtropical countries in Southeast Asia. The extent to which Oseltamivir treatment may protect against a fatal outcome in severe influenza infections is not known. Thailand's National Avian Influenza Surveillance (NAIS) system affords a unique opportunity to describe the epidemiology of laboratory-confirmed severe and fatal human influenza infections.

Field performance and new uses of rapid influenza testing in Thailand.

Objectives: Rapid influenza tests are increasingly used in surveillance systems and for clinical care in Southeast Asia. However, the performance and utility of rapid influenza tests under field conditions in rural Southeast Asia has not been evaluated.

Methods: In the context of a larger study on the causes of respiratory illness in rural Thailand, we used a rapid test to collect data on influenza burden, seasonality, and cost of illness.

The cost of influenza in Thailand.

The cost of influenza in less wealthy tropical countries is needed to inform national vaccine policy decisions. Between September 2003 and August 2004, we prospectively identified hospitalized pneumonia cases and outpatients with laboratory confirmed influenza in a Thai province. Disease incidence, patient interviews, medical record reviews, and data from a national health survey were used to calculate direct and indirect costs which were extrapolated to the Thai population.

Influenza in Thailand: a case study for middle income countries.

Recent studies in Hong Kong and Singapore suggest that the annual impact of influenza in these wealthy tropical cities may be substantial, but little is known about the burden in middle-income tropical countries. We reviewed the status of influenza surveillance, vaccination, research, and policy in Thailand as of January 2004. From 1993 to 2002, 64-91 cases of clinically diagnosed influenza were reported per 100,000 persons per year.

Advances DNA vaccines.

Extraordinary advances in biotechnology make DNA vaccines the most promising area of vaccinology. This article reviews the public health impact of vaccines in the 20th century, summarizes immunologic concepts, and updates the status of DNA vaccine development and its impact on clinical practice.