[Influenza pandemic planning: A challenge for occupational medicine, the public health service and companiesLa planification anti-pandémies d'influenza: un défi pour la médecine du travail, les services de santé publique et les entreprises].

The term pandemic refers to an international or worldwide outbreak of an infectious disease which is limited in time. Due to their high infectiousness and easy person-to-person transmission, flu viruses repeatedly lead to pandemics (approx. 3 pandemics per century.). In contrast to an epidemic, a pandemic is not restricted to one area. The mortality of an influenza pandemic is greater than the seasonal flu wave, and is not restricted to the classical risk groups: high rates of infection can occur in all age groups, with peaks frequently occurring amongst young adults.The specific virological characteristics of the influenza virus represent a great challenge for the health system. In principle, any influenza virus which has never before - or at least not for a long time - circulated within the population can develop into a pandemic virus. One possible candidate amongst others appears to be the influenza virus A-H5N1. Influenza pandemics usually occur at intervals of 11 to 39 years, and 30 years have now passed since the last pandemic. At the moment, the national and international pandemic plans have in most cases not yet been completely worked out. The co-operation between the individual countries should be intensified, and in Germany in particular, efforts should be made - in view of the different concepts of the individual federal states - to arrive at a uniform action plan.The consequences of a pandemic affect both the economic and the social sphere. Hospitals, practicing doctors and public health services must jointly develop action plans in order to be able to care for large numbers of patients within a very short time. Occupational medical specialists should form a link between health services, companies and doctors and hospitals, and already be developing plans and their communication for the companies under their care. © Springer 2007.