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Abstract

Between 1991 and 2000, the Laboratory Virology and Serology Surveillance Scheme (LabVISE) received 340,730 laboratory reports of viral and non-viral pathogen identifications. In this report, data on 136 viruses and 31 non-viral pathogens are analysed. The age and sex distribution and seasonal fluctuations in infections are described. The major clinical diseases associated with LabVISE pathogens are reviewed together with a survey of recent activity reported in Australia. The contribution of LabVISE over the 10-year period to surveillance of poliomyelitis in Australia, up to and beyond the eradication goal, is described. The contribution of LabVISE to influenza surveillance and control in Australia is also described. Prospects for the continued role of LabVISE in the surveillance and control of viral meningitis, viral gastroenteritis and viral respiratory diseases are reviewed. Commun Dis Intell 2002;26:323-374.

Author affiliations

1. Surveillance and Epidemiology Section, Department of Health and Ageing, Canberra, ACT

2. National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT

Corresponding author: Dr Paul Roche, Epidemiologist, Surveillance and Epidemiology Section, Department of Health and Ageing, PO Box 9848, Canberra, ACT, 2601. Telephone: +61 2 6289 8152. Facsimile: +61 2 6289 7791. E-mail: paul.roche@health.gov.au.


This article was published in Communicable Diseases Intelligence Volume 26, No 3, September 2002