Impact of Twitter intensity, time, and location on message lapse of bluebird's pursuit of fleas in Madagascar.

Background: The recent outbreak of bubonic plague in Madagascar reminds us of the continuing public health challenges posed by such deadly diseases in various parts of the world years after their eradication. This study examines the role of Twitter in public health disease surveillance with special focus on how Twitter intensity, time, and location issues explain Twitter plague message delay.

Method: We retrospectively analyzed the Twitter feeds of the 2014 bubonic plague outbreak in Madagascar.