We propose a stochastic model for the analysis of time series of disease counts as collected in typical surveillance systems on notifiable infectious diseases. The model is based on a Poisson or negative binomial observation model with two components: a parameter-driven component relates the disease incidence to latent parameters describing endemic seasonal patterns, which are typical for infec...

There were 57 infectious diseases notifiable at the national level in Australia in 2002. States and territories reported 100,278 cases of infectious diseases to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS), a fall of 4 per cent compared to the number of notifications in 2001. In 2002, the most frequently notified diseases were, sexually transmitted infections (31,929 reports, 32...

In 1997 there were 89,579 notifications to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System. A notable feature of 1997 was the pertussis outbreak which peaked towards the end of the year and resulted in 10,668 cases being notified. The highest number of notifications received was for hepatitis C (unspecified) with 19,692 notifications; this is the first year for which data have been reporte...

In 1999 there were 88,229 [corrected] notifications of communicable diseases in Australia reported to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS). The number of notifications in 1999 was an increase of 3 per cent on notifications in 1998 (85,227) and the second largest reporting year since the NNDSS commenced in 1991. Notifications in 1999 consisted of 29,977 bloodborne infecti...

Investigation of a clinical case of Brucella infection, in which the cause initially indicated Bordetella bronchiseptica, using automated identification techniques prompted a retrospective analysis of previously published cases of B. bronchiseptica infections in China and elsewhere. B. bronchiseptica infection is rarely found in humans, but more frequently in animals. Automated microbial identi...

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), a member of the transmissible spongiform encepahlopathies, has been a notifiable disease in Turkey since 1997. In 2002, the BSE status of Turkey was assessed by the EU Scientific Steering Committee as "it is likely but not confirmed". This study presents the results of a targeted surveillance study to assess the presence of BSE in the age risk population ...

OBJECTIVE To assess whether changes in vaccination policy have affected the epidemiology of pertussis in NSW between 1993 and 2005. METHODS Surveillance data from the NSW Notifiable Diseases Database was reviewed for the period. RESULTS 35,695 cases of pertussis were notified; annual incidence rates varied from 18.4 to 84.2 per 100,000 people. The highest rates of pertussis were consistentl...

Victoria is currently experiencing a widespread outbreak of viral meningitis. Where viral studies have been complete, this has been shown to be predominantly due to the enterovirus ECHO 30. The last such outbreak of echovirus 30 occurred in the summer of 1993-94. The current outbreak appears to have surpassed levels experienced at that time. Enterovirus is not a notifiable disease in Victoria. ...

Routine public health surveillance of notifiable infectious diseases gives rise to weekly counts of reported cases-possibly stratified by region and/or age group. We investigate how an age-structured social contact matrix can be incorporated into a spatio-temporal endemic-epidemic model for infectious disease counts. To illustrate the approach, we analyze the spread of norovirus gastroenteritis...

The development of a Brazilian National Surveillance System in 1975 led to a compulsory reporting of selected infectious diseases aiming to reduce the burden of these events in the country. However, shifts in the epidemiology of these diseases associated with modern life style, demand constant revision of surveillance activities. In this manuscript we present the epidemiology, trends and differ...