Influenza-associated severe acute respiratory infections in 2 sentinel sites in Lebanon-September 2015 to August 2016.

Background: Given the sparse information on the burden of influenza in Lebanon, the Ministry of Public Health established a sentinel surveillance for severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) to identify the attribution of influenza to reported cases. We aim to highlight the proportion of influenza-associated SARI from September 1st, 2015 to August 31st, 2016 in 2 Lebanese hospitals.

Methods: The study was conducted in 2 sentinel sites located in Beirut suburbs and southern province of Lebanon.