Project Details

Although human social contact patterns are of key importance to the spread of infectious diseases, surprisingly little is known about the details of these patterns. Furthermore, direct information about how patterns of contacts change in response to infection is almost entirely absent.

In the case of the current influenza pandemic, school closures are likely to take place and infected individuals are expected to remain at home. In order to understand better the impact of these behavioural changes, the proposed research project aims to use questionnaires to sample 2 groups of people.

First, we will sample school children whose schools have undergone closure.

Second, we will sample individuals who have been clinically diagnosed with influenza.

Participants will be asked to fill in a questionnaire describing the social contacts they make during a day; the questionnaire will be filled in twice - once when their school is closed/when they are ill, and once when their school has reopened/when they have recovered.

It is intended that approximately 800 completed questionnaires will be obtained for each survey.

The survey will be carried out by experienced researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Health Protection Agency.

All appropriate steps will be taken to ensure that data are held securely and anonymously.

The costs applied for will allow the survey to be sent out, the data to be entered and analysed in a timely and accurate fashion.

How do contact patterns change in response to infection?

1. How do the contact patterns of school children change when their school experiences an infection-related closure?

2. How do the contact patterns of individuals change when they are ill?