Human Infection with Influenza A(H7N9) Virus during 3 Major Epidemic Waves, China, 2013–2015

• Main Authors: Peng Wu, Zhibin Peng, Vicky J. Fang, Luzhao Feng, Tim K. Tsang, Hui Jiang, Eric H.Y. Lau, Juan Yang, Jiandong Zheng, Ying Qin, Qiao Sun, Gabriel M. Leung, Sheng Wei, Benjamin J. Cowling
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2016-06-01
• Series: Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Subjects: influenza A(H7N9); clinical severity; epidemiology; viruses; influenza; respiratory diseases
• Online Access: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/22/6/15-1752_article
• ISSN: 1080-6040; 1080-6059

Since March 2013, a novel influenza A(H7N9) virus has caused 3 epidemic waves of human infection in mainland China. We analyzed data from patients with laboratory-confirmed influenza A(H7N9) virus infection to estimate the risks for severe outcomes after hospitalization across the 3 waves. We found that hospitalized patients with confirmed infections in waves 2 and 3 were younger and more likely to be residing in small cities and rural areas than were patients in wave 1; they also had a higher risk for death, after adjustment for age and underlying medical conditions. Risk for death among hospitalized patients during waves 2 and 3 was lower in Jiangxi and Fujian Provinces than in eastern and southern provinces. The variation in risk for death among hospitalized case-patients in different areas across 3 epidemic waves might be associated with differences in case ascertainment, changes in clinical management, or virus genetic diversity.