Spatiotemporal characteristic of varicella cases reported in Henan, 2014–2019

  Objective  To analysis the spatiotemporal characteristics of varicella cases reported in Henan province between 2014 and 2019, explore its spatiotemporal clustering areas and provide evidence for the prevention and control of varicella.

  Methods  The data of all varicella cases reported in Henan between 2014 and 2019 were collected from the China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention for an epidemiologic analysis, spatial autocorrelation analysis and spatiotemporal clustering analysis with software SaTScan and Geoda.

  Results  There were 143 333 varicella cases reported in Henan province between 2014 and 2019, with an average annual incidence of 25.13 per 100 000. Most cases were adolescents. Global spatial autocorrelation showed that all the values of global Moran’s I were positive, i.e. 0.441, 0.392, 0.447, 0.372, 0.335 and 0.163（P<0.001）. The areas with high-high clustering were detected in central Henan.

  Conclusions  The incidence of varicella case increased with year in Henan from 2014 to 2019, and the cases mainly occurred in central Henan with obvious spatiotemporal clustering characteristics.