Weekly influenza surveillance overview, week 49 2013

​For week 49/2013:
• All 29 reporting countries recorded low-intensity influenza activity.
• Of 428 sentinel specimens tested across 24 countries, 13 (3%) were positive for influenza viruses.
• Eight hospitalised laboratory-confirmed influenza cases were reported by four countries.
 
Since the start of the 2013–2014 influenza surveillance period in week 40/2013, there has been no evidence of sustained influenza activity in Europe, even though the percentage of sentinel specimens testing positive for influenza virus has increased in some countries.