Over-the-counter Medication Sales Surveillance for Early Detection of Respiratory Epidemics in Rural China

Since April 1, 2012, an integrated syndromic surveillance system (ISSC) has been implemented in rural Hubei Province, China. Studies have suggested that the OTC retail sale data could be used to detect early outbreak. However, few researches have performed to identify whether OTC retail sales data could also predict the outbreak in developing countries and resource poor settings. To explore the feasibility of using OTC medication sales data for early detection of respiratory epidemics in rural China, this abstract analyzed the relationship between OTC sales and respiratory infectious cases.