ECDC offers disease update
The latest bulletin from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) shows the most common communicable diseases in and around the region, with West Nile Fever, Polio virus, measles and MERS-CoV all making an appearance. According to the report, the current West Nile Fever season is progressing in a way comparable to previous years within both the European Union (EU) and its neighbouring countries, with an average of 20 new cases in the EU each week. Since the beginning of the 2013 transmission season, the number of reported cases in the EU is 187, and 464 in neighbouring countries. Wild-type Polio virus 1 has been isolated in sewage and in the faeces of carriers in Israel, although no cases of paralytic polio have been reported in the country, or in the West Bank or Gaza. The ECDC’s risk assessment on the situation has concluded that there is the possibility that the virus might have been imported and re-established in EU countries and in the European Economic Area. Measles remains an ongoing concern in Europe, withthe ECDC noting that there are ongoing outbreaks in the Netherlands and Germany. The bulletin from the ECDC states: “Dutch authorities have reported 1,540 measles cases since May 2013, [but] the actual number of cases is estimated to be much higher. According to the German Federal Ministry of Health, the number of reported measles cases has been nearly 10 times higher than the complete number of infections in 2012.”
The latest bulletin from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) shows the most common communicable diseases in and around the region, with West Nile Fever, Polio virus, measles and MERS-CoV all making an appearance. According to the report, the current West Nile Fever season is progressing in a way comparable to previous years within both the European Union (EU) and its neighbouring countries, with an average of 20 new cases in the EU each week. Since the beginning of the 2013 transmission season, the number of reported cases in the EU is 187, and 464 in neighbouring countries. Wild-type Polio virus 1 has been isolated in sewage and in the faeces of carriers in Israel, although no cases of paralytic polio have been reported in the country, or in the West Bank or Gaza. The ECDC’s risk assessment on the situation has concluded that there is the possibility that the virus might have been imported and re-established in EU countries and in the European Economic Area. Measles remains an ongoing concern in Europe, withthe ECDC noting that there are ongoing outbreaks in the Netherlands and Germany. The bulletin from the ECDC states: “Dutch authorities have reported 1,540 measles cases since May 2013, [but] the actual number of cases is estimated to be much higher. According to the German Federal Ministry of Health, the number of reported measles cases has been nearly 10 times higher than the complete number of infections in 2012.”
The organisation goes on to say: “The target year for measles elimination in Europe is 2015. The current outbreaks suggest that endemic measles transmission continues in many EU member states and the prospect of achieving the 2015 objective is diminishing. During the period August 2012 to July 2013, 11 of the 30 EU/EAA countries met the elimination target of less than one case of measles per million people in the country.” Meanwhile, MERS-CoV continues its slow progress, with three new cases reported in September, including two deaths in Saudi Arabia. The World Health Organization has also confirmed the death of a previously reported patient from Qatar.