title: Mortality, severe acute respiratory infection, and influenza-like illness associated with influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 in Argentina, 2009.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  While there is much information about the burden of influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 in North America, little data exist on its burden in South America.
  
  
  METHODS
  During April to December 2009, we actively searched for persons with severe acute respiratory infection and influenza-like illness (ILI) in three sentinel cities. A proportion of case-patients provided swabs for influenza testing. We estimated the number of case-patients that would have tested positive for influenza by multiplying the number of untested case-patients by the proportion who tested positive. We estimated rates by dividing the estimated number of case-patients by the census population after adjusting for the proportion of case-patients with missing illness onset information and ILI case-patients who visited physicians multiple times for one illness event.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We estimated that the influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 mortality rate per 100,000 person-years (py) ranged from 1.5 among persons aged 5-44 years to 5.6 among persons aged ≥ 65 years. A(H1N1)pdm09 hospitalization rates per 100,000 py ranged between 26.9 among children aged <5 years to 41.8 among persons aged ≥ 65 years. Influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 ILI rates per 100 py ranged between 1.6 among children aged <5 to 17.1 among persons aged 45-64 years. While 9 (53%) of 17 influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 decedents with available data had obesity and 7 (17%) of 40 had diabetes, less than 4% of surviving influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 case-patients had these pre-existing conditions (p ≤ 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 caused a similar burden of disease in Argentina as in other countries. Such disease burden suggests the potential value of timely influenza vaccinations.
authors.affiliation: Influenza Division, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America.
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Azziz-Baumgartner
authors.forename: Ana María
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Cabrera
authors.forename: Loretta
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Rogelio
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Calli
authors.forename: Gabriela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kusznierz
authors.forename: Clarisa
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Baez
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yedlin
authors.forename: Ana María
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Zamora
authors.forename: Romina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cuezzo
authors.forename: Elena Beatriz
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Sarrouf
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Uboldi
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Herrmann
authors.forename: Elsa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zerbini
authors.forename: Osvaldo
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Uez
authors.forename: Pedro Osvaldo
authors.initials: PO
authors.lastname: Rico Cordeiro
authors.forename: Pollyanna
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chavez
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Julián
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Antman
authors.forename: Fatima
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Coronado
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bresee
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kosacoff
authors.forename: Marc-Alain
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Widdowson
authors.forename: Horacio
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Echenique
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001118:Argentina; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D053118:Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058873:Pandemics; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology