Pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009 outbreak in a residential school at Panchgani, Maharashtra, India.
OBJECTIVE
An outbreak of influenza was investigated between June 24 and July 30, 2009 in a residential school at Panchgani, Maharashtra, India. The objectives were to determine the aetiology, study the clinical features in the affected individuals and, important epidemiological and environmental factors. The nature of public health response and effectiveness of the control measures were also evaluated.


METHODS
Real time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction was performed on throat swabs collected from 82 suspected cases to determine the influenza types (A or B) and sub-types [pandemic (H1N1) 2009, as well as seasonal influenza H1N1, H3N2]. Haemagglutination inhibition assay was performed on serum samples collected from entire school population (N=415) to detect antibodies for pandemic (H1N1) 2009, seasonal H1N1, H3N2 and influenza B/Yamagata and B/Victoria lineages. Antibody titres>or=10 for pandemic (H1N1) 2009 and >or=20 for seasonal influenza A and B were considered as positive for these viruses.


RESULTS
Clinical attack rate for influenza-like illness was 71.1 per cent (295/415). The attack rate for pandemic (H1N1) 2009 cases was 42.4 per cent (176/415). Throat swabs were collected from 82 cases, of which pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus was detected in 15 (18.3%), influenza type A in (6) 7.4 per cent and influenza type B only in one case. A serosurvey carried out showed haemagglutination inhibition antibodies to pandemic (H1N1) 2009 in 52 per cent (216) subjects in the school and 9 per cent (22) in the community.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings confirmed an outbreak of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 due to local transmission among students in a residential school at Panchgani, Maharashtra, India.
Gurav
Yogesh K
YK
National Institute of Virology (ICMR), Pune, India.
Pawar
Shailesh D
SD
Chadha
Mandeep S
MS
Potdar
Varsha A
VA
Deshpande
Abhay S
AS
Koratkar
Santosh S
SS
Hosmani
Abhijeet H
AH
Mishra
Akhilesh C
AC
D002980:Climate; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D006386:Hemagglutination Tests; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D053118:Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype / Q000235:genetics*; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012574:Schools