We constructed a syndromic surveillance system to collect directly information on daily health conditions directly from local residents via the internet [web-based daily questionnaire for health surveillance system (WDQH SS)]. This paper considers the feasibility of the WDQH SS and its ability to detect epidemics. A verification study revealed that our system was an effective surveillance system. We then applied an improved WDQH SS as a measure against public health concerns at the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit meeting in 2008. While in operation at the Summit, our system reported a fever alert that was consistent with a herpangina epidemic. The highly mobile WDQH SS described in this study has three main advantages: the earlier detection of epidemics, compared to other surveillance systems; the ability to collect data even on weekends and holidays; and a rapid system set-up that can be completed within 3 days.

Many issues concerning the taxonomy of Echinococcus have been resolved in recent years with the application of molecular tools. However, the status of Echinococcus maintained in transmission cycles involving cervid intermediate hosts remains to be determined. The recent characterization of the parasite from cervids in Finland has highlighted the paucity of data available, particularly that from North America. In this study, we have characterized a large number of Echinococcus isolates from cervids from Western Canada on the basis of morphology and molecular genetic techniques. Our results support earlier studies suggesting that Echinococcus of cervid origin is phenotypically and genetically distinct to Echinococcus maintained in domestic host assemblages, and also confirms that Echinococcus of cervid origin does not constitute a genetically homogeneous group. However, our data do not support the existence of 2 distinct genotypes (strains/subspecies) with separate geographical distributions. Our data appear to support the existence of only 1 species in cervids, but additional isolates from cervids and wolves in other endemic regions should be characterized before a final decision is made on the taxonomic status of Echinococcus in cervids.