Comparison of geological clusters between influenza and COVID-19 in Thailand with unsupervised clustering analysis

In this study, unsupervised clustering techniques were used to identify clusters of disease trends in Thailand. The analysis inc orporated three distinct surveillance datasets: the pandemic influenza outbreak, influenza in the endemic stage, and the early stages of COVID-19. The analysis demonstrated a significant difference in the distribution of provinces between Cluster -1, representing those with unique transmission patte rns, and the other clusters, indicating provinces with similar transmission patterns among their members. Specifically, for Pandemic Influenza, the ratio was 61:16, while for Pandemic COVID-19, it was 65:12. In contrast, Endemic Influenza exhibited a ratio of 46:31, with a notable emergence of more clustered provinces in the southern, western, and central regions. Furthermore, a pair of provinces with highly similar spreading patterns were identified during the pandemic stages of both influenza and COVID-19. Although the similarity decreased slightly for endemic influenza, they still belonged to the same cluster. Our objective was to identify the transmission patterns of influenza and COVID-19, with the aim of providing quantitative and spatial information to aid public health management in preparing for future pandemics or transitioning into an endemic phase.
Source: PLoS One - Category: Biomedical Science Authors: Source Type: research