Background
School-aged children and school reopening dates have important roles in
community influenza transmission. Although many studies evaluated the
impact of reactive closures during seasonal and pandemic influenza
outbreaks on medically attended influenza in surrounding communities,
few assess the impact of planned breaks (i.e., school holidays) which
coincide with influenza seasons, while accounting for differences in
seasonal peak timing. Here, we analyze the effects of winter and spring
breaks on influenza risk in school-aged children, measured by student
absenteeism due to influenza-like illness (a-ILI).