Background: Influenza activity in the 2020-2021 season was remarkably low, likely due to implementation of public health preventive measures such as social distancing, mask wearing, and school closure. With waning immunity, the impact of low influenza activity in the 2020-2021 season on the following season is unknown.
Methods: We built a multistrain compartmental model that captures immunity over multiple influenza seasons in the United States. Compared with the counterfactual case, where influenza activity remained at the normal level in 2020-2021, we estimated the change in the number of hospitalizations when the transmission rate was decreased by 20% in 2020-2021. We varied the level of vaccine uptake and effectiveness in 2021-2022. We measured the change in population immunity over time by varying the number of seasons with lowered influenza activity.
Results: With the lowered influenza activity in 2020-2021, the model estimated 102 000 (95% CI, 57 000-152 000) additional hospitalizations in 2021-2022, without changes in vaccine uptake and effectiveness. The estimated changes in hospitalizations varied depending on the level of vaccine uptake and effectiveness in the following year. Achieving a 50% increase in vaccine coverage was necessary to avert the expected increase in hospitalization in the next influenza season. If the low influenza activity were to continue over several seasons, population immunity would remain low during those seasons, with 48% of the population susceptible to influenza infection.
Conclusions: Our study projected a large compensatory influenza season in 2021-2022 due to a light season in 2020-2021. However, higher influenza vaccine uptake would reduce this projected increase in influenza.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ofid/ofab607 | DOI Listing |
J Virol
January 2025
Department of Host-Microbe Interactions, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
Unlabelled: The tonsils have been identified as a site of replication for Epstein-Barr virus, adenovirus, human papillomavirus, and other respiratory viruses. Human tonsil epithelial cells (HTECs) are a heterogeneous group of actively differentiating cells. Here, we investigated the cellular features and susceptibility of differentiated HTECs to specific influenza viruses, including expression of avian-type and mammalian-type sialic acid (SA) receptors, viral replication dynamics, and the associated cytokine secretion profiles.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
January 2025
Institute of Ecology and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Ashworth Laboratories, King's Buildings, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK.
Emerging infectious diseases are of major concern to animal and human health. Recent emergence of high pathogenicity avian influenza virus (HPAIV) (H5N1 clade 2.3.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnal Chim Acta
January 2025
Department of Biomaterials, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, SIMATS, Saveetha University, Chennai, 600077, India. Electronic address:
Detection of viruses, including coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), via facile, fast, and optical methods is highly important to control pandemics. In this regard, optically-active nanomaterials and nanoparticles (NPs) are a wise choice due to their long-term stability, ease of functionalization, and modifications. In this work, a nanocomposite based on NiFe layered double hydroxide (LDH) and ZIF-67 metal-organic framework (MOF) was designed and synthesized, and decorated on the surface of the melt-blown mask.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAustralas J Ageing
January 2025
Centre for Population Health, Western Sydney Local Health District, Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia.
Objectives: Acute respiratory illnesses have a disproportionate impact on older people, and especially those living in residential aged care facilities where transmission risks are heightened. Additionally, staff in these facilities have been working under challenging conditions, often ill-equipped in terms of both training and resources to successfully manage the outbreaks of these illnesses. This paper examines the actions of an Australian public health unit to improve influenza outbreak management in residential aged care facilities and critiques the outcomes through a contemporary lens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPoult Sci
January 2025
Research Center for Molecular Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Universitas Padjadjaran, West Java, 40132, Indonesia; Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Bhakti Kencana, West Java, 40614, Indonesia.
Avian influenza is a significant threat to the poultry industry, and it has become an outbreak in many countries because of its mortality and morbidity. Concerns about the history of avian influenza outbreaks has prompted all countries to enhance their independence in pharmaceutical and biological components as a preparedness measure for any potential occurrences. The production of antibodies such as IgY is a potential alternative.
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