This document presents a menu of possible public measures to be taken during influenza pandemics, giving public health and scientific information on what is known or can be said about their likely effectiveness, costs (direct and indirect), acceptability, public expectations and other more practical considerations. The ‘ECDC Menu’ aims to help EU Member States and institutions, individually or collectively, decide which measures they will apply.
This surveillance report was prepared by EUVAC.net, which is a European surveillance network for vaccine-preventable diseases. The network collects data on surveillance systems and selected epidemiological characteristics of vaccine preventable diseases in the EU and other participating countries. It is jointly funded by ECDC and the Statens Serum Institut (Denmark).
This paper identifies and describes population groups at increased risk for severe outcomes of influenza (“risk groups”) and advocates vaccination for two major groups, namely a) persons in the older age group, usually 65 years and older; and b) persons with chronic medical conditions.
The first European Communicable Disease Epidemiological Report produced by ECDC raised that the most important disease threat in Europe is posed by the micro-organisms that have become resistant to antibiotics.