The Occupational Risk of Influenza A (H1N1) Infection among Healthcare Personnel during the 2009 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies

PLoS One. 2016 Aug 31;11(8):e0162061. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0162061. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of this review was to record systematically and assess the published literature relating to the occupational risk of influenza A (H1N1) infection among healthcare personnel during the 2009 pandemic.

Methods: The literature search was performed in June 2015. An update was carried out in May 2016. It was applied to the electronic databases EMBASE, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, CINAHL and Google Scholar. The quality assessment was conducted with a tool using eight criteria. A meta-analysis was carried out to compute pooled effect estimates for influenza A (H1N1) infection.

Results: A total of 26 studies were included in the review, 15 studies met the criteria for the meta-analysis. After a sensitivity analysis the pooled analysis showed a significantly increased odds for influenza A (H1N1) infection for healthcare personnel compared to controls/comparisons (OR = 2.08, 95% CI = 1.73 to 2.51). The pooled prevalence rate for healthcare personnel alone was 6.3%.

Conclusions: This review corroborates the assumption that healthcare personnel were particularly at risk of influenza A (H1N1) infection during the 2009 pandemic. Healthcare facilities should intensify their focus on strategies to prevent infections among healthcare personnel, especially during the first period of pandemics.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis
  • Review
  • Systematic Review

MeSH terms

  • Health Personnel / statistics & numerical data*
  • Humans
  • Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype / isolation & purification*
  • Influenza, Human / epidemiology*
  • Influenza, Human / virology
  • Pandemics
  • Prevalence

Grants and funding

No special funding was received for this study. However, the Institute for Health Service Research in Dermatology and Nursing (IVDP) of the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) receives an unrestricted fund from the German Social Accident Insurance Institution for the Health and Welfare Services (BGW) on an annual basis to maintain the working group at the UKE. The funder played no role in study design, data collection and analyses, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The BGW is not responsible for the contents of the present review.