“The distinction between a category 4 or 5 and a smaller pandemic is key,” said Dr. Arnold Monto, a researcher at the University of Michigan School of Public Health in Ann Arbor. “What we can take away from the 1918 pandemic in terms of school closings and social distancing—which occasionally occur if there is a big seasonal outbreak—is that they usually occur late after the outbreak has taken off. It could be catastrophic if these measures are not taken in advance.”
The CDC initiative will address the utility of many of these nonpharmacologic means for control of a future influenza pandemic.
The Seasonal & Pandemic Influenza 2007 meeting was endorsed by the AAP, IDSA, CDC, NIAID, and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.