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Forecasts of influenza activity in human populations could help guide key preparedness tasks. We conducted a scoping review to characterize these methodological approaches and identify research gaps. Adapting the PRISMA methodology for systematic reviews, we searched PubMed, CINAHL, Project Euclid, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews for publications in English since January 1, 2000 using the terms \"influenza AND (forecast* OR predict*)\", excluding studies that did not validate forecasts against independent data or incorporate influenza-related surveillance data from the season or pandemic for which the forecasts were applied. We included 35 publications describing population-based (N = 27), medical facility-based (N = 4), and regional or global pandemic spread (N = 4) forecasts. They included areas of North America (N = 15), Europe (N = 14), and/or Asia-Pacific region (N = 4), or had global scope (N = 3). Forecasting models were statistical (N = 18) or epidemiological (N = 17). Five studies used data assimilation methods to update forecasts with new surveillance data. Models used virological (N = 14), syndromic (N = 13), meteorological (N = 6), internet search query (N = 4), and/or other surveillance data as inputs. Forecasting outcomes and validation metrics varied widely. Two studies compared distinct modeling approaches using common data, 2 assessed model calibration, and 1 systematically incorporated expert input. Of the 17 studies using epidemiological models, 8 included sensitivity analysis. This review suggests need for use of good practices in influenza forecasting (e.g., sensitivity analysis); direct comparisons of diverse approaches; assessment of model calibration; integration of subjective expert input; operational research in pilot, real-world applications; and improved mutual understanding among modelers and public health officials.

As of November 2015, the Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic that began in West Africa in late 2013 is waning. The human toll includes more than 28,000 EVD cases and 11,000 deaths in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, the most heavily-affected countries. We reviewed 66 mathematical modeling studies of the EVD epidemic published in the peer-reviewed literature to assess the key uncertainties models addressed, data used for modeling, public sharing of data and results, and model performance. Based on the review, we suggest steps to improve the use of modeling in future public health emergencies. The outbreak of Ebola that started in West Africa in late 2013 has caused at least 28,000 illnesses and 11,000 deaths. As the outbreak progressed, global and local public health authorities scrambled to contain the spread of the disease by isolating those who were ill, putting in place infection control processes in health care settings, and encouraging the public to take steps to prevent the spread of the illness in the community. It took a massive investment of resources and personnel from many countries to eventually bring the outbreak under control. To determine where to allocate people and resources during the outbreak, public health authorities often turned to mathematical models created by scientists to predict the course of the outbreak and identify interventions that could be effective. Many groups of scientists created models of the epidemic using publically available data or data they obtained from government officials or field studies. In some instances, the models yielded valuable insights. But with various groups using different methods and data, the models didn’t always agree on what would happen next or how best to contain the epidemic. Now, Chretien et al. provide an overview of Ebola mathematical modeling during the epidemic and suggest how future efforts may be improved. The overview included 66 published studies about Ebola outbreak models. Although most forecasts predicted many more cases than actually occurred, some modeling approaches produced more accurate predictions, and several models yielded valuable insights. For example, one study found that focusing efforts on isolating patients with the most severe cases of Ebola would help end the epidemic by substantially reducing the number of new infections. Another study used real-time airline data to predict which traveler screening strategies would be most efficient at preventing international spread of Ebola. Furthermore, studies that obtained genomic data showed how specific virus strains were transmitted across geographic areas. Chretien et al. argue that mathematical modeling efforts could be more useful in future pubic health emergencies if modelers cooperated more, and suggest the collaborative approach of weather forecasters as a good example to follow. Greater data sharing and the creation of standards for epidemic modeling would aid better collaboration.

Interannual climate variability patterns associated with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation phenomenon result in climate and environmental anomaly conditions in specific regions worldwide that directly favor outbreaks and/or amplification of variety of diseases of public health concern including chikungunya, hantavirus, Rift Valley fever, cholera, plague, and Zika. We analyzed patterns of some disease outbreaks during the strong 2015–2016 El Niño event in relation to climate anomalies derived from satellite measurements. Disease outbreaks in multiple El Niño-connected regions worldwide (including Southeast Asia, Tanzania, western US, and Brazil) followed shifts in rainfall, temperature, and vegetation in which both drought and flooding occurred in excess (14–81% precipitation departures from normal). These shifts favored ecological conditions appropriate for pathogens and their vectors to emerge and propagate clusters of diseases activity in these regions. Our analysis indicates that intensity of disease activity in some ENSO-teleconnected regions were approximately 2.5–28% higher during years with El Niño events than those without. Plague in Colorado and New Mexico as well as cholera in Tanzania were significantly associated with above normal rainfall (p < 0.05); while dengue in Brazil and southeast Asia were significantly associated with above normal land surface temperature (p < 0.05). Routine and ongoing global satellite monitoring of key climate variable anomalies calibrated to specific regions could identify regions at risk for emergence and propagation of disease vectors. Such information can provide sufficient lead-time for outbreak prevention and potentially reduce the burden and spread of ecologically coupled diseases.

Infectious disease modeling has played a prominent role in recent outbreaks, yet integrating these analyses into public health decision-making has been challenging. We recommend establishing ‘outbreak science’ as an inter-disciplinary field to improve applied epidemic modeling.

Abbreviations: ICMJE, International Committee of Medical Journal Editors; NIH, National Institutes of Health; WHO, World Health Organization Provenance: Not commissioned; externally peer-reviewed Summary Points * The recent outbreaks caused by Ebola and Zika viruses highlighted the importance of medical and public health research in accelerating outbreak control and prompted calls for researchers to share data rapidly and widely during public health emergencies. * Effective preparation for emergencies requires the routine practice of data sharing in scientific research. * Key impediments to data sharing, such as long-standing academic norms and human and technical resource limitations, cannot immediately be surmounted when an emergency occurs. * Ongoing research that does not directly relate to an emergency now may be critical for the next unpredictable outbreak. * As part of emergency preparedness, the scientific community should support ongoing initiatives that address major obstacles to data sharing and should embrace open science practices in both emergency and nonemergency research. In 2003, the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) began requiring a data-sharing plan for grant applications with annual costs over US$500,000; a 2013 national survey found that 65% of life science researchers thought the NIH policies had been influential in increasing data sharing [10].

El Niño/Southern Oscillation related climate anomalies were analyzed by using a combination of satellite measurements of elevated sea-surface temperatures and subsequent elevated rainfall and satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index data. A Rift Valley fever (RVF) risk mapping model using these climate data predicted areas where outbreaks of RVF in humans and animals were expected and occurred in the Horn of Africa from December 2006 to May 2007. The predictions were subsequently confirmed by entomological and epidemiological field investigations of virus activity in the areas identified as at risk. Accurate spatial and temporal predictions of disease activity, as it occurred first in southern Somalia and then through much of Kenya before affecting northern Tanzania, provided a 2 to 6 week period of warning for the Horn of Africa that facilitated disease outbreak response and mitigation activities. To our knowledge, this is the first prospective prediction of a RVF outbreak.

As physicians transform observed frequencies from studies into predicted probabilities for a given patient, we generally fail to consider that the predictions we utter about a given therapeutic intervention are themselves part of the intervention. My patient sat across the desk from me. The setting was military — both officers, we were nearing the end of our year-long duty in Afghanistan — but the essence of the encounter is common in many clinical settings. He wanted a prognosis. During our tour I had served primarily as an epidemiologist and public health advisor, but that day I was acting as a general medical officer. He was a U.S. Marine. His desert camouflage uniform was rumpled, and his eyes were droopy. He had not been sleeping. He suffered under the burden of his responsibilities. There had been . . .

Epidemic forecasting and prediction tools have the potential to provide actionable information in the midst of emerging epidemics. While numerous predictive studies were published during the 2016-2017 Zika Virus (ZIKV) pandemic, it remains unknown how timely, reproducible, and actionable the information produced by these studies was. To improve the functional use of mathematical modeling in support of future infectious disease outbreaks, we conducted a systematic review of all ZIKV prediction studies published during the recent ZIKV pandemic using the PRISMA guidelines. Using MEDLINE, EMBASE, and grey literature review, we identified studies that forecasted, predicted, or simulated ecological or epidemiological phenomena related to the Zika pandemic that were published as of March 01, 2017. Eligible studies underwent evaluation of objectives, data sources, methods, timeliness, reproducibility, accessibility, and clarity by independent reviewers. 2034 studies were identified, of which n = 73 met the eligibility criteria. Spatial spread, R0 (basic reproductive number), and epidemic dynamics were most commonly predicted, with few studies predicting Guillain-Barré Syndrome burden (4%), sexual transmission risk (4%), and intervention impact (4%). Most studies specifically examined populations in the Americas (52%), with few African-specific studies (4%). Case count (67%), vector (41%), and demographic data (37%) were the most common data sources. Real-time internet data and pathogen genomic information were used in 7% and 0% of studies, respectively, and social science and behavioral data were typically absent in modeling efforts. Deterministic models were favored over stochastic approaches. Forty percent of studies made model data entirely available, 29% provided all relevant model code, 43% presented uncertainty in all predictions, and 54% provided sufficient methodological detail to allow complete reproducibility. Fifty-one percent of predictions were published after the epidemic peak in the Americas. While the use of preprints improved the accessibility of ZIKV predictions by a median of 119 days sooner than journal publication dates, they were used in only 30% of studies. Many ZIKV predictions were published during the 2016-2017 pandemic. The accessibility, reproducibility, timeliness, and incorporation of uncertainty in these published predictions varied and indicates there is substantial room for improvement. To enhance the utility of analytical tools for outbreak response it is essential to improve the sharing of model data, code, and preprints for future outbreaks, epidemics, and pandemics.

Although traumatic brain injury and traumatic amputations may be signature wounds of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, the toll on military personnel from diseases and nonbattle injuries is substantial — and largely preventable. The critical element is command support. On August 31, 2011, a 24-year-old soldier from California died from complications of rabies treatment. He was infected months earlier, from a dog bite he sustained in Afghanistan. His death provides a glimpse of the risk of disease and non-battle injuries that service members face in war. Although traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and traumatic amputations are considered “signature” wounds of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, the toll on military personnel from diseases and non-battle injuries is substantial — and largely preventable. Before World War II, more American soldiers at war died from disease and non-battle injuries than from . . .

Background All countries need effective disease surveillance systems for early detection of outbreaks. The revised International Health Regulations [IHR], which entered into force for all 194 World Health Organization member states in 2007, have expanded traditional infectious disease notification to include surveillance for public health events of potential international importance, even if the causative agent is not yet known. However, there are no clearly established guidelines for how countries should conduct this surveillance, which types of emerging disease syndromes should be reported, nor any means for enforcement. Discussion The commonly established concept of syndromic surveillance in developed regions encompasses the use of pre-diagnostic information in a near real time fashion for further investigation for public health action. Syndromic surveillance is widely used in North America and Europe, and is typically thought of as a highly complex, technology driven automated tool for early detection of outbreaks. Nonetheless, low technology applications of syndromic surveillance are being used worldwide to augment traditional surveillance. Summary In this paper, we review examples of these novel applications in the detection of vector-borne diseases, foodborne illness, and sexually transmitted infections. We hope to demonstrate that syndromic surveillance in its basic version is a feasible and effective tool for surveillance in developing countries and may facilitate compliance with the new IHR guidelines.