Tweet
20 Sep 2017
Five events of local malaria transmission have been reported recently in the EU. Three of these events were associated with either mosquito-borne transmission from an imported case (introduced malaria) or an imported infected mosquito (airport malaria), in Greece and northern Cyprus ( P. vivax ), and in France ( P. falciparum ); and two of the cases were most likely associated with nosocomial mosquito-borne or iatrogenic transmission of P. falciparum, in Italy and Greece.
Main conclusions and options for response
The following options should be considered for preventing and controlling mosquito-borne transmission of malaria:
increasing awareness of risk and bite avoidance for travellers and residents in EU areas where introduced malaria has been reported;
increasing awareness among clinicians surrounding the sporadic occurrence of locally-acquired malaria cases in the EU;
consideration of malaria infection by health practitioners in the EU/EEA Member States in the differential diagnosis for symptomatic persons returning from affected areas in countries with recently recorded local mosquito-borne malaria transmission;
rapid notification of cases to ensure the timely implementation of appropriate public health measures in areas with competent vector populations;
implementation by EU Member States of safety measures defined in the EU Directives 2006/17/EC and 2004/33/EC [1,2] and the technical guide to the quality and safety of organs for transplantation [3]. EU Member States with locally transmitted infections may apply blood safety measures as suggested in the ECDC expert opinion [4]. EU Member States may decide whether to implement preventive measures for persons returning from the affected areas in non-endemic countries, taking into account the measures currently being implemented by the local blood safety authorities.
Healthcare providers should be aware of the risk of nosocomial transmission of malaria and enforce standard precautions to prevent this.
The risk of further spread of malaria in the EU associated with these events is considered very low.
The following options should be considered for preventing nosocomial transmission of malaria:
strict application of standard precautions in healthcare settings for patients presenting with malaria;
application of measures to prevent vector-borne transmission around hospitalised cases of malaria while parasitaemic, such as mosquito-nets, the use of repellents or insecticides in areas with competent, active vector populations;
the triggering of an immediate investigation of infection control practices related to blood-borne transmission when a nosocomial transmission of malaria is suspected.
Five events of local malaria transmission have been reported recently in the EU. Three of these events were associated with either mosquito-borne transmission from an imported case (introduced malaria) or an imported infected mosquito (airport malaria), in Greece and northern Cyprus ( P. vivax ), and in France ( P. falciparum ); and two of the cases were most likely associated with nosocomial mosquito-borne or iatrogenic transmission of P. falciparum, in Italy and Greece.
Main conclusions and options for response
The following options should be considered for preventing and controlling mosquito-borne transmission of malaria:
increasing awareness of risk and bite avoidance for travellers and residents in EU areas where introduced malaria has been reported;
increasing awareness among clinicians surrounding the sporadic occurrence of locally-acquired malaria cases in the EU;
consideration of malaria infection by health practitioners in the EU/EEA Member States in the differential diagnosis for symptomatic persons returning from affected areas in countries with recently recorded local mosquito-borne malaria transmission;
rapid notification of cases to ensure the timely implementation of appropriate public health measures in areas with competent vector populations;
implementation by EU Member States of safety measures defined in the EU Directives 2006/17/EC and 2004/33/EC [1,2] and the technical guide to the quality and safety of organs for transplantation [3]. EU Member States with locally transmitted infections may apply blood safety measures as suggested in the ECDC expert opinion [4]. EU Member States may decide whether to implement preventive measures for persons returning from the affected areas in non-endemic countries, taking into account the measures currently being implemented by the local blood safety authorities.
Healthcare providers should be aware of the risk of nosocomial transmission of malaria and enforce standard precautions to prevent this.
The risk of further spread of malaria in the EU associated with these events is considered very low.
The following options should be considered for preventing nosocomial transmission of malaria:
strict application of standard precautions in healthcare settings for patients presenting with malaria;
application of measures to prevent vector-borne transmission around hospitalised cases of malaria while parasitaemic, such as mosquito-nets, the use of repellents or insecticides in areas with competent, active vector populations;
the triggering of an immediate investigation of infection control practices related to blood-borne transmission when a nosocomial transmission of malaria is suspected.