Leveraging the influenza sentinel surveillance platform for SARS-CoV-2 monitoring in Bangladesh (2020-2024): a prospective sentinel surveillance study.

Background: There is limited global evidence on whether influenza sentinel surveillance platforms can be effectively adapted for long-term SARS-CoV-2 monitoring in low-resource contexts. We explored the utility of the hospital-based influenza sentinel surveillance (HBIS) platform for monitoring SARS-CoV-2 in Bangladesh by comparing SARS-CoV-2 detection in HBIS platform with national COVID-19 platform and assessing how its integration into influenza surveillance aligns with national trends.

Methods: From March 2020 to December 2024, we analysed data from patients with severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) and influenza-like illness (ILI) enrolled in HBIS.

Addressing influenza in Bangladesh: closing evidence and policy gaps with strategic interventions.

Since the establishment of the National Influenza Surveillance Program in 2007, Bangladesh has significantly progressed in monitoring influenza through national and international collaboration. However, this collaboration has not been translated into actionable control policies, which coupled with low vaccination coverage, impose a substantial health and economic burden in Bangladesh. Critical gaps remain in understanding the influenza burden among high-risk populations and the barriers influencing their vaccine uptake.

Decade-Long Trends in Antibiotic Prescriptions According to WHO AWaRe Classification Among Severe Acute Respiratory Infection Patients at Tertiary Hospitals in Bangladesh (2011-2020).

To aid in the development of antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs), we analyzed the patterns and trends in antibiotic prescriptions for patients with severe acute respiratory infection (SARI), utilizing the WHO's AWaRe classification. We analyzed data from hospital-based influenza surveillance from January 2011 to December 2020 across nine Bangladeshi tertiary-level hospitals. Surveillance physicians collected WHO-defined SARI patient data, including demographics, clinical characteristics, and antibiotic prescriptions.