Patterns of social mixing are key determinants of epidemic spread. Here we present the
results of an internet-based social contact survey completed by a cohort of participants over …

Variability in the risk of transmission for respiratory pathogens can result from several
factors, including the intrinsic properties of the pathogen, the immune state of the host and …

BACKGROUND: Mathematical models, based on data describing normal patterns of social
mixing, are used to understand epidemics in order to predict patterns of disease spread and …

Influenza poses a significant health threat to children, and schools may play a critical role in
community outbreaks. Mathematical outbreak models require assumptions about contact …

Background Mathematical modelling of infectious diseases transmitted by the respiratory or
close-contact route (eg, pandemic influenza) is increasingly being used to determine the …

Evaluating the impact of different social networks on the spread of respiratory diseases has
been limited by a lack of detailed data on transmission outside the household setting as well …

Background School closure is often considered as an option to mitigate influenza epidemics
because of its potential to reduce transmission in children and then in the community. The …

We expect social networks to change as a result of illness, but social contact data are
generally collected from healthy persons. Here we quantified the impact of influenza-like …

Background As Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza spreads around the globe, it strikes school-
age children more often than adults. Although there is some evidence of pre-existing …

The interaction of human social behaviour and transmission is an intriguing aspect of the life
cycle of respiratory viral infections. Although age-specific mixing patterns are often assumed …