Emergency Department surveillance Consider influenza testing of patients being admitted from the emergency department who have influenza-like illness with no other identified pathogen. Facilitate the timely initiation of droplet precautions, through early diagnosis among patients being admitted, to lessen the chance of influenza spreading to personnel or other patients. Infection control personnel should be in regular contact with laboratory personnel regarding influenza-positive specimens. Update clinical personnel regularly about the availability and use of diagnostic tests. However, sporadic cases of influenza can occur at any time of the year.
Influenza is very difficult to diagnose on the basis of clinical symptoms alone.
Other pathogens that can cause similar symptoms include, but are not limited to, Mycoplasma pneumoniae , adenovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, rhinovirus, parainfluenza viruses, and Legionella spp . Based on facility surveillance, infection control personnel should develop threshold levels of influenza or influenza-like illness at which influenza testing and outbreak control measures should be initiated. Physicians may have a lower threshold for testing individuals at high risk for influenza-related complications. Droplet precautions should be initiated pending laboratory confirmation of influenza. Appropriate samples to collect can include a nasopharyngeal or throat swab, from adults or nasal wash, or nasal aspirates, depending on which rapid test is used.