Practice of COVID-19 preventive measures and risk of acute respiratory infections: a longitudinal study in students from 95 countries

After the widespread implementation of measures to mitigate COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019), influenza activity and influenza-like illnesses declined sharply (Olsen et al., 2020). The observed decline was attributed to artifactual changes related to hospital-seeking behaviors for respiratory illnesses and real changes related to a reduction in circulating respiratory viruses because of implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions against COVID-19. Influenza data reported to the World Health Organization's FluNet platform in 2021 showed a continued decline in outpatient visits for influenza-like illnesses and confirmed influenza-positive results in most countries and regions in the Northern Hemisphere, Temperate zones, and Southern Hemisphere (WHO 2021a).
Source: International Journal of Infectious Diseases - Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Source Type: research