Global Influenza Hospital-based Surveillance Network (GIHSN): results of surveillance of influenza and other respiratory viruses in hospitalised patients in Brazil, 2015

Raboni, Sonia M; Moura, Fernanda EA; Caetano, Braulia C; Avanzi, Valéria M; Pereira, Luciane A; Nogueira, Meri B; Vidal, Luine R; Tavares, Isabel CF; Pradel, Florence K; Picot, Valentina S; Puig-Barbera, Joan; Siqueira, Marilda M

South (Curitiba) Brazil, which basically followed the rain period of each region. In the Northeast, in particular, viral circulation was prevalent in the first 4 months of the year, indicating that the vaccination campaign was being carried out in a post)seasonal period, possibly explaining the low effectiveness. Through broad geographical coverage and data standardization, the GIHSN group seeks to obtain a global picture of the impact of influenza on patients with respiratory pathologies. In addition, this network provides invaluable tools to investigate the seasonality of influenza in regions in which this information is not available, as well as a framework for estimating the effectiveness of seasonal influenza vaccines in preventing severe cases among age and risk groups.