3.1 Participant characteristics
The average age of participants was 10.2 years with slightly more males
than females represented (Table 1). More than half of the participants
reported symptoms that met the definition of an ILI. Cough, malaise, and
nasal congestion were reported in over 80% of participants while runny
nose and sore throat were reported in more than 70%. Myalgia was the
least common symptom and was reported in 28% of participants. Slightly
more than half of the children (52.4%) were vaccinated against
influenza. Influenza was confirmed by RT-PCR in 710 (30.0%) specimens
(influenza A: n=443; influenza B: n=263; dual detection: n=4).