NREVSS: U.S. Respiratory Virus Test Positivity Rates from 450+ Labs

More than 450 public health and clinical laboratories across the United States report weekly aggregate test counts and positive detections for respiratory viruses to the CDC's NREVSS. The dataset includes data from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, starting from July 2019. Data are provisional and reported voluntarily, with completeness improving for periods more than two weeks prior.

Use Cases

• Analyze weekly trends in Percent_pos and Detections for specific Pathogens like RSV or SARS-CoV-2.
• Compare regional viral activity by aggregating data by State or Level (e.g., national vs. regional).
• Calculate smoothed trends using moving averages like Percent_Pos_3wma and Detections_5wma.
• Track testing volume over time using the Tests column and its 3-week moving average (Tests_3wma).
• Examine temporal patterns by grouping data by Mmwrweek_end and filtering by Subtype (e.g., influenza).

Strengths

• Data sourced from more than 450 laboratories across the United States and its territories.
• Includes multiple respiratory Pathogens such as adenovirus, influenza, RSV, and SARS-CoV-2.
• Provides both raw weekly counts (Tests, Detections) and smoothed moving averages for analysis.
• Covers a time range from July 2019, providing multi-year surveillance data.

Limitations

• Data are reported voluntarily and are provisional, subject to change for up to two years after the reporting week.
• No patient-specific demographic or clinical outcome data (e.g., hospitalization) is collected.
• Row count and total data volume are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale ML.

Provenance

Source

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) via the National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS).

Collection Method

Aggregate counts of total tests and positive detections reported voluntarily by participating public health and clinical laboratories.

Time Range

From July 6, 2019 onward.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-03 18:56:15; data is reported weekly.

Geography

United States, including all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.