This report updates previous recommendations by CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) regarding the use of antiviral agents for the prevention and treatment of influenza (CDC. Prevention and control of influenza: recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices [ACIP]. MMWR 2008;57[No. RR-7]).This report contains information on treatment and chemoprophylaxis of influenza virus infection and provides a summary of the effectiveness and safety of antiviral treatment medications. Highlights include recommendations for use of 1) early antiviral treatment of suspected or confirmed influenza among persons with severe influenza (e.g., those who have severe, complicated, or progressive illness or who require hospitalization); 2) early antiviral treatment of suspected or confirmed influenza among persons at higher risk for influenza complications; and 3) either oseltamivir or zanamivir for persons with influenza caused by 2009 H1N1 virus, influenza A (H3N2) virus, or influenza B virus or when the influenza virus type or influenza A virus subtype is unknown; 4) antiviral medications among children aged <1 year; 5) local influenza testing and influenza surveillance data, when available, to help guide treatment decisions; and 6) consideration of antiviral treatment for outpatients with confirmed or suspected influenza who do not have known risk factors for severe illness, if treatment can be initiated within 48 hours of illness onset. Additional information is available from CDC's influenza website at http://www.cdc.gov/flu, including any updates or supplements to these recommendations that might be required during the 2010-11 influenza season. Health-care providers should be alert to announcements of recommendation updates and should check the CDC influenza website periodically for additional information. Recommendations related to the use of vaccines for the prevention of influenza during the 2010-11 influenza season have been published previously (CDC. Prevention and control of influenza with vaccines: recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices [ACIP], 2010. MMWR 2010;59[No. RR-8]).

Introduction: This study examined alternative models for estimating influenza-attributable pneumonia and influenza (P&I) deaths in the United States which included influenza specific measures of viral activity as well as measures of RSV activity. Materials and methods: P&I deaths in the United States were modeled from 1976 to 1997. Predictors in the models included influenza subtypes A(H1N1), A(H3N2), and B and RSV. We analyzed data from 1976 to 1997. RSV data was available from 1990 through 1997 and therefore separate models were fit that included and excluded RSV measures. Results: Influenza accounted for an average of 4773 P&I deaths per year from 1976 to 1997. The results were highly correlated with previous estimates of P&I deaths in the United States (r=0.74, p<0.001). From 1990 to 1997, after controlling for RSV, influenza accounted for an average of 7900 P&I deaths per year. RSV was associated with 563 P&I deaths per year during this time period. Discussion: The models in this paper provide strain specific estimates of the association between influenza and P&I deaths in the United States. The models are well suited for providing more precise measurements of the association between influenza and deaths.