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Volume 30, Supplement—October 2024
SUPPLEMENT ISSUE
Articles

The Central Role of the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance Program in Supporting Force Health Protection

June M. EarlyComments to Author , Hunter J. Smith, Stephanie S. Cinkovich, M. Shayne Gallaway, Christan N. Stager, and Matthew R. Kasper
Author affiliation: Global Emerging Infections Surveillance (GEIS) Branch, Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division, Defense Health Agency, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA (J.M. Early, H.J. Smith, S.S. Cinkovich, M.S. Gallaway, C.N. Stager, M.R. Kasper); Cherokee Nation Businesses, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA (S.S. Cinkovich)

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Table

Select accomplishments of the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance Program in supporting force health protection, 1997–2024*

No. Surveillance priority Accomplishment
1
 Influenza
 Data on circulating influenza strains collected from GEIS-funded partners from ≈400 locations in >30 countries around the world directly informs the selection of strains in the annual influenza vaccination, leading to a safe and effective preventive countermeasure for service members and civilians alike.
2
 Multidrug-resistant organisms
 With funding support from the GEIS program, the WRAIR MRSN used genomic data from whole-genome sequencing to detect an outbreak of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a military treatment facility, ultimately leading to the identification of an environmental reservoir as the source of transmission (W. Stribling et al., unpub. data, https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.07.24.550326v2).
3
 Plasmodium falciparum malaria
 Data on pfhrp2/3-deleted P. falciparum parasites collected from GEIS-funded partners in Africa, Asia, and South America demonstrated that rapid diagnostic tests, like the DoD-authorized BinaxNOW, might not be suitable for accurately diagnosing malaria in countries where service members are or could be deployed, highlighting the need for the DoD to seek alternative diagnostics (13).
4
 SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern
With funding support from the GEIS program, DoD laboratories were able to rapidly detect emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, including Alpha (N501Y) in Kenya (14), and Omicron (B.1.1.529) and Delta (B.1.617.2) in the United States.
5 Acute diarrhea The GEIS program coordinated with DoD subject matter experts and decision-makers to develop clinical practice guidelines for management of acute diarrhea, a common medical condition with a significant operational impact, in the Middle East.

*DoD, Department of Defense; GEIS, Global Emerging Infections Surveillance; WRAIR MSRN, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research Multidrug-Resistant Organism Repository and Surveillance Network.

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References
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