West Nile virus - Multistate (Europe) - Monitoring season 2013 (ECDC/CDTR, September 2 2013, edited)

[Giuseppe]

[Source: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), full PDF document: (LINK). Edited.]


COMMUNICABLE DISEASE THREATS REPORT

Week 35, 25-31 August 2013

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West Nile virus - Multistate (Europe) - Monitoring season 2013

Opening date: 3 June 2013 Latest update: 30 August 2013


Epidemiological summary

As of 29 August 2013, 68 human cases of West Nile fever have been reported in the EU and 256 cases in neighbouring countries since the beginning of the 2013 transmission season.

EU Member States

• Austria
  • One confirmed case has been reported in the area of Sankt P?lten.
• Greece
  • Forty-nine cases of WNF have been reported in Greece. The regions affected are Attiki (24), Imathia (1), Kavala (6), Thessaloniki (6) and Xanthi (9), and three from newly affected areas; Kerkyra (1), Serres (1) and Ileia (1). For two cases reported this week the place of infection is still not available.
• Italy
  • Italy has reported nine cases of WNF so far this year. Of the five new cases reported this week, two cases were reported from the province of Treviso and three cases in the region of Emilia-Romagna. For the latter cases, the province of infection is not available.
• Hungary
  • Hungary has reported three cases of WNF. Two cases were reported this week from two newly affected counties (Fejer and Komaron). The previously reported case was in Pest county, an affected area in 2012.
• Romania
  • Romania has reported five cases of WNF so far this year. In addition to the one case previously reported in Galati county, four cases were reported this week from three newly affected counties; Braila (2), Ialomita (1) and Iasi (1).
• Croatia
  • Croatia has reported its first probable case in Zagrebacka county, the laboratory results for this case are still pending.

Neighbouring countries

• Israel
  • Forty-seven cases of WNF have been reported in the Central, Haifa and Tel Aviv districts.
• Montenegro
  • Montenegro reported its first case this year in Podgorica region, an area suspected to be affected last year.
• Russia
  • Russia has reported 102 cases of WNF from ten oblasts in Russia: Adygeya oblast (1), Astrakhanskaya oblast (38), Lipetskaya oblast (2), Rostovskaya oblast (4), Samarskaya oblast (8), Saratovskaya oblast (12), Volgogradskaya oblast (33), Voronezhskaya oblast (1), Belgorodskaya oblast (2) and the newly affected Kaluzhskaya oblast (1).
• Serbia
  • Serbia has reported 104 cases of WNF from eight districts: Grad Beograd (75), Podunavski (7), Sremski (4), Juzno-backi (1), Juzno-banatski (9), Kolubarski (3), Macvanski (1) Branicevski district (1) and the newly affected districts of Jablancki (1) and Srednje-banatski (2).
• the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
  • One case has been reported in Kocani (Eastern Macedonia).
• Ukraine
  • The first new case for this year was reported in Zhytomyrs?ka oblast.

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ECDC assessment

The 2013 season has started and is progressing in comparable fashion to previous years in EU and neighbouring countries. West Nile fever in humans is a notifiable disease in the EU. The implementation of control measures are considered important for ensuring blood safety by the national health authorities when human cases of West Nile fever occur. According to the EU blood directive, efforts should be made to defer blood donations from affected areas with ongoing virus transmission to humans.


Actions

ECDC produces weekly West Nile fever risk maps during the transmission season to inform blood safety authorities regarding affected areas.
ECDC published a West Nile fever risk assessment tool on 3 July 2013.

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