Influenza A testing and detection in patients admitted through emergency departments in Sydney during winter 2009: implications for rational testing.

The article focuses on a study which described the testing and detection of influenza A in patients admitted to hospital for acute care during the winter 2009 pandemic influenza outbreak in Sydney, New South Wales. Based on the figures, the highest testing rates were found in 0-4-year-old children during the peak period of the outbreak, and in patients diagnosed with a febrile or respiratory illness. It is inferred that diagnosis at admission became the strongest predictor of a clinician's decision to test for influenza.