CDC Releases Combined Summary of Notifiable Infectious, Noninfectious Diseases

Notifiable diseases and conditions are those for which regular, frequent, and timely information is necessary for prevention and control.

Monitoring this data gives CDC and other public health authorities the ability to detect and respond to sudden changes in the occurrence and distribution of health threats. State and local health departments voluntarily submit the data to CDC.

The Summary (Infectious) summarizes data on dozens of nationally notifiable diseases and conditions in the United States. Highlights include:

Influenza-associated pediatric deaths — From Dec. 30, 2012, to Dec. 28, 2013, CDC received reports of 161 deaths among people under the age 18 years – a more than three-fold increase compared with 2012, and a two-fold decrease compared with the pandemic year 2009. There were 69 pediatric deaths from seasonal influenza per calendar year during 2005-2012 and 358 pediatric deaths reported during the 2009-2010 flu pandemic.

Measles — There were 10 measles outbreaks in 2013, accounting for three-fourths of reported cases. The three largest outbreaks accounted for more than half of cases. In each outbreak, measles spread after a U.S. resident who caught measles abroad introduced the extremely contagious viral infection into communities with pockets of people unvaccinated because of philosophical or religious beliefs.

Novel flu viruses — In 2013, there were 21 cases of human infection with variant flu viruses in the U.S. – all associated with direct or indirect contact with swine. There were no human-to-human transmissions. Any public health laboratory that receives a suspicious specimen of flu virus – one that cannot be subtyped using standard methods — immediately submits that specimen to CDC for further testing.

To learn more visit the CDC website for further detail.