Syndromic surveillance for bioterrorism following World Trade Center attack

This report describes the operational and maintenance aspects of conducting syndromic surveillance for bioterrorism and demonstrates the limitations of drop-in systems that rely on manual data collection.

The report highlights the need for more experience with and evaluation of syndromic surveillance. A related commentary calls for better integration of emergency medicine into data collection systems for public health surveillance that would provide benefits beyond recognition of bioterrorism.

Until such systems are put in place, the commentary's author says it is essential that emergency physicians, who are still the best chances of early detection of bioterrorism, be sensitive to outbreaks and vigilant about promptly reporting them to local public health authorities. (Syndromic Surveillance for Bioterrorism Following the Attacks on the World Trade Center--New York City, 2001, p. 414)

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