The most recent ACDC report has several changes in language and data presentation, following the harmonization of data. Part of this change is that the ACDC has changed the way they report suspected cases. The terminology follows a "Cumulatively, x number of (suspected) cases, of which y were (lab-)confirmed" pattern. See the examples below:
"Cumulatively, 184 suspected cases of which 21 were lab-confirmed and no deaths of mpox have been reported from four of twelve
departments in Congo."
"Cumulatively, 275 cases, of which 52 were laboratory confirmed, and one death (CFR: 1.9%) of mpox have been reported from 22 of 48 health districts in Cote d'Ivoire."
"Cumulatively, 23,319 cases, of which 5,467 were laboratory confirmed, and 730 deaths (CFR: 3.1%) of mpox have been reported from all 26 provinces in DRC."
"Cumulatively, 1,497 suspected cases, of which 365 were lab-confirmed, and no deaths of mpox have been reported from 34 of 49 health districts in Burundi."
In addition, ACDC is making blanket statements at the top of their reports now, stating the number of cases that tested negative. However, this information is not provided at the country-specific level. With this language change, we need to re-evaluate how we reported suspected cases and if we wish to continue reporting suspected cases. I have added suspected cases for the Congo, in which I subtracted the number of confirmed cases from the number of cumulative suspected cases (184-21) and added the difference to our line list:
Congo example:
Congo reports 184 total suspected cases, of which 21 were laboratory-confirmed. 184-21=163. Therefore, I added 22 suspected cases so that our suspected case count (141 before adding new suspected cases) matched the one 'reported' by ACDC.
Should we continue to do this for the other countries and ensure that our overall case counts match the overall cumulative case counts reported by ACDC? Do we assume cases that aren't confirmed are suspected still under this new language?
The most recent ACDC report has several changes in language and data presentation, following the harmonization of data. Part of this change is that the ACDC has changed the way they report suspected cases. The terminology follows a "Cumulatively, x number of (suspected) cases, of which y were (lab-)confirmed" pattern. See the examples below:
"Cumulatively, 184 suspected cases of which 21 were lab-confirmed and no deaths of mpox have been reported from four of twelve departments in Congo."
"Cumulatively, 275 cases, of which 52 were laboratory confirmed, and one death (CFR: 1.9%) of mpox have been reported from 22 of 48 health districts in Cote d'Ivoire."
"Cumulatively, 23,319 cases, of which 5,467 were laboratory confirmed, and 730 deaths (CFR: 3.1%) of mpox have been reported from all 26 provinces in DRC."
"Cumulatively, 1,497 suspected cases, of which 365 were lab-confirmed, and no deaths of mpox have been reported from 34 of 49 health districts in Burundi."
In addition, ACDC is making blanket statements at the top of their reports now, stating the number of cases that tested negative. However, this information is not provided at the country-specific level. With this language change, we need to re-evaluate how we reported suspected cases and if we wish to continue reporting suspected cases. I have added suspected cases for the Congo, in which I subtracted the number of confirmed cases from the number of cumulative suspected cases (184-21) and added the difference to our line list:
Congo example: Congo reports 184 total suspected cases, of which 21 were laboratory-confirmed. 184-21=163. Therefore, I added 22 suspected cases so that our suspected case count (141 before adding new suspected cases) matched the one 'reported' by ACDC.
Should we continue to do this for the other countries and ensure that our overall case counts match the overall cumulative case counts reported by ACDC? Do we assume cases that aren't confirmed are suspected still under this new language?