Comparable burden of severe acute respiratory illness among children and older adults in Kenya: evidence from a multi-site health utilization survey

Abstract

Highlights • Survey-defined severe respiratory illness was high at both age extremes.• Only 26% of actual admissions in the survey occurred at sentinel hospitals.• The U-shaped age pattern persisted after national geographic extrapolation.• Influenza-associated severe illness was estimated at 365 episodes per 100,000 annually.• Influenza age patterns depended on all-age site or regional positivity estimates.