Syndromic surveillance summary: 22 September 2022 week 37
Updated 5 January 2023
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Reporting week: 12 September to 18 September 2022
During week 37, there were increases in syndromic indicators for acute respiratory infections (ARI) in children aged 1 to 4 and 5 to 14 years, including emergency department ARI attendances and NHS 111 cold or flu calls. Asthma indicators also increased in children aged 5 to 14 years, in line with the recent return to school and seasonally expected trends.
Remote health advice syndromic surveillance system
During week 37, NHS 111 calls and online assessments for cold/flu, difficulty breathing, cough and sore throat increased, particularly in children aged 1 to 4 and 5 to 14 years. There were also increases noted in ‘potential coronavirus (COVID-19)’ calls and online assessments, with calls notably increasing in children aged 5 to 14 years.
GP in hours syndromic surveillance system
During week 37 there were increases in GP consultations for upper and lower respiratory tract infections and pharyngitis or scarlet fever, particularly in children aged under 15 years. Consultations for acute presenting asthma also increased, mainly in children aged 5 to 14 years, in line with seasonally expected trends and the recent return to school. GP in-hours COVID-19-like consultations remained stable during week 37.
GP out of hours syndromic surveillance system
Daily GP out-of-hours contact data from 4 August 2022 onwards has not been received due to a widely publicised disruption faced by one of the GP out-of-hours clinical software system providers. We have since been informed that this disruption was as a result of a cybersecurity incident caused by ransomware. We are working closely with our data provider to restore the daily syndromic feed.
Emergency department syndromic surveillance system
During week 37, emergency department attendances for acute respiratory infections increased, particularly in children aged 1 to 4 and 5 to 14 years. Acute bronchiolitis attendances increased in children aged under 5 years. There was also an increase in asthma attendances in children, in line with expected trends and the recent return to school. Overall, COVID-19-like attendances remained stable during week 37.
Ambulance syndromic surveillance system
During week 37, COVID-19-like ambulance calls remained stable however there were small increases noted in difficulty breathing calls.