Where has all the influenza gone? The impact of COVID-19 on the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses, Australia, March to September 2020

Sheena G Sullivan; Sandra Carlson; Allen C Cheng; Monique BN Chilver; Dominic E Dwyer; Melissa Irwin; Jen Kok; Kristine Macartney; Jennifer MacLachlan; Cara Minney-Smith; David Smith; Nigel Stocks; Janette Taylor; Ian G Barr

doi:10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.47.2001847

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Where has all the influenza gone? The impact of COVID-19 on the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses, Australia, March to September 2020
Sheena G Sullivan¹ , Sandra Carlson² , Allen C Cheng^3,4 , Monique BN Chilver⁵ , Dominic E Dwyer⁶ , Melissa Irwin⁷ , Jen Kok⁶ , Kristine Macartney^8,9 , Jennifer MacLachlan¹⁰ , Cara Minney-Smith¹¹ , David Smith^11,12 , Nigel Stocks⁵ , Janette Taylor⁶ , Ian G Barr¹³
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Affiliations: ¹ WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza, Royal Melbourne Hospital, and Doherty Department, University of Melbourne, at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia ² FluTracking, Hunter New England Population Health, Newcastle, Australia ³ School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia ⁴ Department of Infectious Diseases, Alfred Health, and Central Clinical School, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia ⁵ Discipline of General Practice, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia ⁶ Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology Laboratory Services, New South Wales Health Pathology - Institute of Clinical Pathology and Medical Research, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, Australia ⁷ Rapid Surveillance, Centre for Epidemiology and Evidence, NSW Ministry of Health, Sydney, Australia ⁸ National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance and The Children’s Hospital Westmead, Sydney, Australia ⁹ Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia ¹⁰ WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis, Royal Melbourne Hospital at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia ¹¹ PathWest Laboratory Medicine WA, Nedlands, Australia ¹² Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, Australia ¹³ WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza, Royal Melbourne Hospital, and Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Melbourne, at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia

Correspondence:
Sheena Sullivan
sheena.sullivan influenzacentre.org
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Citation style for this article: Sullivan Sheena G, Carlson Sandra, Cheng Allen C, Chilver Monique BN, Dwyer Dominic E, Irwin Melissa, Kok Jen, Macartney Kristine, MacLachlan Jennifer, Minney-Smith Cara, Smith David, Stocks Nigel, Taylor Janette, Barr Ian G. Where has all the influenza gone? The impact of COVID-19 on the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses, Australia, March to September 2020. Euro Surveill. 2020;25(47):pii=2001847. https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.47.2001847 Received: 23 Oct 2020; Accepted: 26 Nov 2020

Abstract

The coronavirus disease pandemic was declared in March 2020, as the southern hemisphere’s winter approached. Australia expected co-circulation of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, influenza and other seasonal respiratory viruses. However, influenza notifications were 7,029 (March–September) compared with an average 149,832 for the same period in 2015–2019*, despite substantial testing. Restrictions on movement within and into Australia may have temporarily eliminated influenza. Other respiratory pathogens also showed remarkably changed activity in 2020.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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A corrected article has been published for this content:

Erratum for Euro Surveill. 2020;25(47)

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Where has all the influenza gone? The impact of COVID-19 on the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses, Australia, March to September 2020

Citation style for this article: <a href="/search?value1=Sheena+G+Sullivan&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Sullivan Sheena G</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Sandra+Carlson&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Carlson Sandra</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Allen+C+Cheng&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Cheng Allen C</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Monique+BN+Chilver&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Chilver Monique BN</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Dominic+E+Dwyer&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Dwyer Dominic E</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Melissa+Irwin&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Irwin Melissa</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Jen+Kok&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Kok Jen</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Kristine+Macartney&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Macartney Kristine</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Jennifer+MacLachlan&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">MacLachlan Jennifer</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Cara+Minney-Smith&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Minney-Smith Cara</a>, <a href="/search?value1=David+Smith&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Smith David</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Nigel+Stocks&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Stocks Nigel</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Janette+Taylor&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Taylor Janette</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Ian+G+Barr&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Barr Ian G</a>. Where has all the influenza gone? The impact of COVID-19 on the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses, Australia, March to September 2020. <a href="/content/ecdc">Euro Surveill.</a> 2020;25(47):pii=2001847. <a href="https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.47.2001847" title="doi link" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.47.2001847</a> Received: 23 Oct 2020;   Accepted: 26 Nov 2020

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Where has all the influenza gone? The impact of COVID-19 on the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses, Australia, March to September 2020

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