You are here

Article Text

Article menu
Download PDFPDF
Short report
Modelling the impact of pandemic influenza A(H1N1) on UK paediatric intensive care demand
  1. A Ercole1,
  2. D K Menon1,
  3. D R O’Donnell2
  1. 1
    University of Cambridge Department of Anaesthesia, Box 93, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge CB2 2QQ, UK
  2. 2
    University of Cambridge Department of Paediatrics, Box 181, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge CB2 2QQ, UK
  1. Correspondence to Dr Ari Ercole, Cambridge University Department of Anaesthesia, Box 93, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 2QQ, UK; ae105{at}cam.ac.uk

Abstract

Background: Each winter seasonal respiratory virus infections account for large variations in unplanned admission to UK paediatric intensive care units (PICU). The emergence of pandemic influenza A(H1N1) has been associated with a notable predominance in children and may be expected to have a significant impact on PICU provision.

Aims: To derive conservative projections for PICU demand from current data and examine the effect of regional variations in bed provision.

Methods and Results: PICU demand was estimated with the FluSurge 2.0 model using age-stratified data for the UK population and recently published conservative estimates for epidemiological parameters. The data suggest that a significant proportion of current total capacity may be required at the peak of the pandemic. Variation in per capita critical care provision across the UK leads to a wide range in potential impact at a regional level.

Conclusions: Contingency measures for children needing paediatric intensive care are needed to absorb the likely increase in activity expected due to pandemic influenza this winter. Because of variations in provision by region, the role of paediatric retrieval services will be especially important.

https://doi.org/10.1136/adc.2009.171520

Statistics from Altmetric.com

    Request Permissions

    If you wish to reuse any or all of this article please use the link below which will take you to the Copyright Clearance Center’s RightsLink service. You will be able to get a quick price and instant permission to reuse the content in many different ways.

    View Full Text

    Footnotes

    • Funding DKM is funded as a Senior Investigator of the National Institute for Health Research, UK, and supported by the BOC Professorship of the Royal College of Anaesthetists.

    • Competing interests None.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.