• FluTrackers.com Inc. does not provide medical advice. Information on this web site is collected from various internet resources, and the FluTrackers board of directors makes no warranty to the safety, efficacy, correctness or completeness of the information posted on this site by any author or poster. The information collated here is for instructional and/or discussion purposes only and is NOT intended to diagnose or treat any disease, illness, or other medical condition. Every individual reader or poster should seek advice from their personal physician/healthcare practitioner before considering or using any interventions that are discussed on this website. By continuing to access this website you agree to consult your personal physican before using any interventions posted on this website, and you agree to hold harmless FluTrackers.com Inc., the board of directors, the members, and all authors and posters for any effects from use of any medication, supplement, vitamin or other substance, device, intervention, etc. mentioned in posts on this website, or other internet venues referenced in posts on this website.
  • We are not asking for any donations. Do not donate to any entity who says they are raising funds for us.

JAMA Netw Open . Association of Influenza Activity and Environmental Conditions With the Risk of Invasive Pneumococcal Disease

tetano

Editor, Senior Moderator
JAMA Netw Open


. 2020 Jul 1;3(7):e2010167.
doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.10167.
Association of Influenza Activity and Environmental Conditions With the Risk of Invasive Pneumococcal Disease


Isha Berry[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ashleigh R Tuite[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Angela Salomon[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Steven Drews[SUP] 2 3 [/SUP], Anthony D Harris[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Todd Hatchette[SUP] 5 6 [/SUP], Caroline Johnson[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Jeff Kwong[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Jose Lojo[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Allison McGeer[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Leonard Mermel[SUP] 8 9 [/SUP], Victoria Ng[SUP] 10 [/SUP], David N Fisman[SUP] 1 [/SUP]



Affiliations

Abstract

Importance: Streptococcus pneumoniae is the most commonly identified cause of bacterial pneumonia, and invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) has a high case fatality rate. The wintertime coseasonality of influenza and IPD in temperate countries has suggested that pathogen-pathogen interaction or environmental conditions may contribute to IPD risk.
Objectives: To evaluate the short-term associations of influenza activity and environmental exposures with IPD risk in temperate countries and to examine the generalizability of such associations across multiple jurisdictions.
Design, setting, and participants: This case-crossover analysis of 19 566 individuals with IPD from 1998 to 2011 combined individual-level outcomes of IPD and population-level exposures. Participants lived in 12 jurisdictions in Canada (the province of Alberta and cities of Toronto, Vancouver, and Halifax), Australia (Perth, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, and Melbourne), and the United States (Baltimore, Providence, and Philadelphia). Data were analyzed in 2019.
Exposures: Influenza activity, mean temperature, absolute humidity, and UV radiation at delays of 1 to 3 weeks before case occurrence in each jurisdiction.
Main outcomes and measures: Matched odds ratios (ORs) for IPD associated with changes in exposure variables, estimated using multivariable conditional logistic regression models. Heterogeneity in effects across jurisdictions were evaluated using random-effects meta-analytic models.
Results: This study included 19 566 patients: 9629 from Australia (mean [SD] age, 42.8 [30.8] years; 5280 [54.8%] men), 8522 from Canada (only case date reported), and 1415 from the United States (only case date reported). In adjusted models, increased influenza activity was associated with increases in IPD risk 2 weeks later (adjusted OR [aOR] per SD increase, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.01-1.13). Increased humidity was associated with decreased IPD risk 1 week later (aOR per 1 g/m3, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.96-1.00). Other associations were heterogeneous; metaregression suggested that combinations of environmental factors might represent unique local risk signatures. For example, the heterogeneity in effects of UV radiation and humidity at a 2-week lag was partially explained by variation in temperature (UV index: coefficient, 0.0261; 95% CI, 0.0078 to 0.0444; absolute humidity: coefficient, -0.0077; 95% CI, -0.0125 to -0.0030).
Conclusions and relevance: In this study, influenza was associated with increased IPD risk in temperate countries. This association was not explained by coseasonality or case characteristics and appears generalizable. Absolute humidity was associated with decreased IPD risk in the same jurisdictions. The generalizable nature of these associations has important implications for influenza control and advances the understanding of the seasonality of this important disease.
 
Back
Top Bottom