Influenza B viruses (IBV) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality during interpandemic periods in the human population. Two phylogenetically distinct IBV lineages, B/Yamagata and B/Victoria, co-circulate worldwide and they present challenges for vaccine strain selection. Until the present study, there was little information regarding the pattern of the circulating strains of IBV in Uruguay. A subset of positive influenza B samples from influenza-like illness (ILI) outpatients and severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) inpatients detected in sentinel hospitals in Uruguay during 2012–2019 were selected. The sequencing of the hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) genes showed substitutions at the amino acid level. Phylogenetic analysis reveals the co-circulation of both lineages in almost all seasonal epidemics in Uruguay, and allows recognizing a lineage-level vaccine mismatch in approximately one-third of the seasons studied. The epidemiological results show that the proportion of IBV found in ILI was significantly higher than the observed in SARI cases across different groups of age (9.7% ILI, 3.2% SARI) and patients between 5–14 years constituted the majority (33%) of all influenza B infection (p < 0.05). Interestingly, we found that individuals >25 years were particularly vulnerable to Yamagata lineage infections.

Background: South America has become the new epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic with more than 1.1M reported cases and >50,000 deaths (June 2020). Conversely, Uruguay stands out as an outlier managing this health crisis with remarkable success. Methods: We developed a molecular diagnostic test to detect SARS-CoV-2. This methodology was transferred to research institutes, public hospitals and academic laboratories all around the country, creating a “ COVID-19 diagnostic lab network ”. Uruguay also implemented active epidemiological surveillance following the “Test, Trace and Isolate” (TETRIS) strategy coupled to real-time genomic epidemiology. Results: Three months after the first cases were detected, the number of positive individuals reached 826 (23 deaths, 112 active cases and 691 recovered). The Uruguayan strategy was based in a close synergy established between the national health authorities and the scientific community. In turn, academia rapidly responded to develop national RT-qPCR tests. Consequently, Uruguay was able to perform ∼1,000 molecular tests per day in a matter of weeks. The “ COVID-19 diagnostic lab network ” performed more than 54% of the molecular tests in the country. This, together with real- time genomics, were instrumental to implement the TETRIS strategy, helping to contain domestic transmission of the main outbreaks registered so far. Conclusions: Uruguay has successfully navigated the first trimester of the COVID-19 health crisis in South America. A rapid response by the scientific community to increase testing capacity, together with national health authorities seeking out the support from the academia were fundamental to successfully contain, until now, the COVID-19 outbreak in the country.

Suicide is a major public health concern, and Uruguay has one of the highest suicide mortality rates in the Americas. In 2022, the Ministry of Public Health implemented a real-time digital surveillance system for suicide attempts as part of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy. This study presents findings from its first year, analysing 4723 emergency department presentations nationwide. The age-standardised suicide attempt rate was 140.44 per 100,000 inhabitants, with women accounting for 71.6% of cases. Self-poisoning was the most common method, followed by hanging and suffocation for men and self-cutting for women. Nearly half of all attempts involved individuals aged 15–29, highlighting the need for youth-focused and gender-sensitive interventions. This study demonstrates the value of real-time surveillance systems in identifying at-risk groups, informing prevention efforts, and supporting timely interventions. While some challenges in system implementation remain, future efforts should focus on strengthening data integration, leveraging artificial intelligence for risk assessment, and improving follow-up care to reduce repeated attempts and overall suicide mortality.