Chapter 12a: Epidemiology by country – an overview

Author(s):  
Wilhelm Erber ◽  
Heinz-J Schmitt ◽  
Tamara Vuković Janković

TBE is a flavivirus infection of the central nervous system (CNS), transmitted by ticks and in some instances by ingestion of unpasteurized milk. It is diagnosed in the forested belts of Northern Eurasia ranging from the UK, eastern France, The Netherlands and Norway down to Italy through central and Eastern Europe, Russia, Kazakhstan, and China to Japan. About 10,000 cases of TBE are reported annually, likely a significant underestimate as serological testing is more sporadic than complete and, in some countries, (like Japan) not even available. The European Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) have put TBE on their list of notifiable diseases. Their case definition requires clinical symptoms of CNS infection plus virological or serological confirmation of the infection, usually by detection of specific immunoglobulins IgG and IgM. Vaccination against TBE is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines. the safest and most effective medicines needed in a health system. Surveillance of TBE and the TBEV is incomplete. Reported incidences do not reflect actual risk since this fluctuates annually as a result of changes in exposure, vaccine uptake, intensity of case finding and reporting, climate factors, reservoir animals and ticks – just to mention the most relevant factors. For largely unknown reasons (including human behavior, improved diagnostics, or climate change) TBEV appears to be spreading north, east, west, even south and to higher altitudes to areas that were previously believed to be free of the virus.

TBE is a flavivirus infection of the central nervous system (CNS), transmitted by ticks and in some instances by ingestion of unpasteurized milk. It is diagnosed in the forested belts of Northern Eurasia ranging from the UK, eastern France, The Netherlands and Norway down to Italy through central and Eastern Europe, Russia, Kazakhstan, and China to Japan. About 10,000 cases of TBE are reported annually, likely a significant underestimate as serological testing is more sporadic than complete and, in some countries, (like Japan) not even available. The European Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) have put TBE on their list of notifiable diseases. Their case definition requires clinical symptoms of CNS infection plus virological or serological confirmation of the infection, usually by detection of specific immunoglobulins IgG and IgM. Vaccination against TBE is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines. the safest and most effective medicines needed in a health system. Surveillance of TBE and the TBEV is incomplete. Reported incidences do not reflect actual risk since this fluctuates annually as a result of changes in exposure, vaccine uptake, intensity of case finding and reporting, climate factors, reservoir animals and ticks – just to mention the most relevant factors. For largely unknown reasons (including human behavior, improved diagnostics, or climate change) TBEV appears to be spreading north, east, west, even south and to higher altitudes to areas that were previously believed to be free of the virus.


Author(s):  
Wilhelm Erber ◽  
Heinz-Josef Schmitt ◽  
Tamara Vuković Janković

• TBE is a flavivirus infection of the central nervous system (CNS), transmitted by ticks and in some rare instances by ingestion of unpasteurized milk. • TBE is diagnosed in the forested belts of Northern Eurasia ranging from eastern France and Norway down to northern Italy through central and Eastern Europe, Russia, Kazakhstan, and China to the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. • About 10,000 cases of TBE are reported annually. • The European Centers for Disease Control (E-CDC) have put TBE on their list of notifiable diseases; their case definition requires clinical symptoms of CNS infection plus microbiolog-ical confirmation of the infection, usually by detection of specific immunoglobulins, IgG and IgM. • Despite this, surveillance of the TBEV in both ticks and humans is incomplete. Reported incidences do not reflect actual risk since this fluctuates annually as a result of changes in exposure, vaccine uptake, intensity of case finding and reporting, and climate, just to men-tion the most relevant factors. • For largely unknown reasons (including human behavior, improved diagnostics, or climate change) TBEV appears to be spreading north, east, and even south to areas that were pre-viously believed to be free of the virus. • The country reports in Chapter 12b provide a current and official ‘state-of-the-art’ survey on TBE, with available information about the virus, vectors, modes of transmission, case reporting, vaccine and prevention efforts, burden of disease over time, age and gender distribution of cases, virus isolation data, and risk area distribution. • Chapter 12c provides a risk map for TBEV based on documented TBE cases, TBEV infection, as well as on the detection of TBEV in nature. This map does not reflect the incidence of the disease or the prevalence of the virus in a given area. As the intensity and complete-ness of epidemiological surveillance varies between different countries, the map presented here may not be entirely complete, and very likely TBEV infections and thus TBE may occur in additional (‘new’) areas.


2014 ◽  
Vol 143 (3) ◽  
pp. 561-572 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. S. DRYDEN ◽  
K. SAEED ◽  
S. OGBORN ◽  
P. SWALES

SUMMARYThis series of serologically confirmed Lyme disease is the largest reported in the UK and represents 508 patients who presented to one hospital in the South of England between 1992 and 2012. The mean rate of borreliosis throughout this period was 9·8/100 000 population, much higher than the reported national rate of 1·7/100 000. The actual rate increased each year until 2009 when it levelled off. Patients clinically presented with rash (71%), neurological symptoms (16%, of whom half had VII cranial nerve palsies), arthropathy (8%), pyrexia (5%), cardiac abnormalities (1%) or other manifestations (<1%). Twenty percent of patients had additional non-specific symptoms of fatigue, myalgia, and cognitive changes. Serological diagnosis was with a two-tiered system of ELISA and immunoblot. There was a marked seasonal presentation in the summer months and in the first and sixth decades of life. A third of patients gave a clear history of a tick bite. The median interval between tick bite and clinical symptoms was 15 days [interquartile range (IQR) 9–28 days], with a further interval of 14 days to clinical diagnosis/treatment (IQR 2–31 days). Most cases were acquired locally and only 5% abroad. Patients responded to standard antibiotic therapy and recurrence or persistence was extremely rare. A second group of patients, not included in the clinical case series, were those who believed they had Lyme disease based on a probable tick bite but were seronegative by currently available validated tests and presented with subjective symptoms. This condition is often labelled chronic Lyme disease. These patients have a different disease from Lyme disease and therefore an alternative name, chronic arthropod-borne neuropathy (CAN), and case definition for this condition is proposed. We suggest that this chronic condition needs to be distinguished from Lyme disease, as calling the chronic illness ‘Lyme disease’ causes confusion to patients and physicians. We recommend research initiatives to investigate the aetiology, diagnosis and therapy of CAN.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Teklehaimanot Fentie Wendie ◽  
Abdulmejid Ahmed ◽  
Solomon Ahmed Mohammed

Abstract Background Rational drug use requires that patients receive and take medication appropriately. Though the process of diagnosis and pharmaceutical care is complex, World Health Organization (WHO)/international network for rational use of drugs (INRUD) core drug use indicators investigate drug use to minimize the hazardous effect of the drug and enhance the wise use of scares resources. This study assessed drug use patterns in health centers of Dessie town using WHO/INRUD indicators. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in public health centers of Dessie town. Data were retrospectively collected from 1500 prescriptions dispensed from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2018 using WHO data collection tool to assess prescribing indicators. For patient care and health facility indicators, 600 patients and 3 health centers were prospectively reviewed. Systematic random sampling was used to select samples. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20. Results The average number of drugs per encounter was 2.1. The percentage of encounters with antibiotics and injection was 44% and 13.9%, respectively. The percentage of drugs prescribed by generic name and from an essential drug list was 98% and 100%, respectively. On average, patients spent 4.7 min for consultation and 105 s for dispensing. From 1305 prescribed drugs, 92% were dispensed, while only 4% were labeled adequately. More than half (54.8%) of patients had adequate knowledge of their medication. None of the health centers had an essential drug list. The availability of key essential medicines was 64.10%. Conclusion This study demonstrated irrational drug use practices in all healthcare facilities. Polypharmacy, antibiotics over-prescribing, short consultation and dispensing times, inadequate labeling of medicines, inadequate level of patients' knowledge about prescribed medicines, and unavailability of key drugs in stock were found to be the major problems. Continuous refreshment trainings on rational use of drugs and WHO recommendations should be given for prescribers and pharmacists. Further, we recommend studies involving large number of facilities to estimate overall prescribing practices.


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 235-242
Author(s):  
Vivi Setiawaty ◽  
Chita Septiawati ◽  
Endang Burni

Abstract Rabies is a zoonotic disease that is transmitted to humans by bites or scratches or licks (on damaged skin or mucous membranes) from infected animals, most often dogs. Rabies is endemic in several regions in Indonesia. If untreated, bites of rabies will cause fatal. The aim of this analysis is to explore the characteristics of fatal human cases caused by the bites of rabies transmitting animal in Indonesia in 2016–2017. The collection of human case data with bites of rabies transmitting animals (GHPR) from all provinces of Indonesia in 2016 and 2017 by the zoonotic Subdirectorate, Directorate Pencegahan dan Pengendalian Penyakit Tular Vektor dan Zoonosis (P2PTVZ), Directorat General of Disease Prevention and Control. We analyzed tha characteristics of the provincial which was reported GHPR cases, incubation period, bite location, clinical symptoms, history of vaccination and the demography of fatal GHPR cases. The clinical case definition for GHPR based on the World Health Organization. The results show that GHPR cases were reported from 25 out of 34 provinces. The most frequently reported incubation period is 1-2 month (40.7%). The location of most bites on the legs (37.3%). Most clinical symptoms reported were hydrophobia (76.6%), followed by hypersalivation (64.5%), convulsion (35.5%), photophobia and hyperhidrosis respectively (31.2%). Fever is not the main symptom, only 19.9%. Most fatal GHPR cases do not receive appropriate vaccination post-exposure (VAR). Male as fatal GHPR cases are more often than women with ratio 1.8 to 1 and adult cases more than children. Inconclusions immediate treatment with complete post-exposure vaccination has not been well implemented in reported fatal GHPR cases.  Abstrak Rabies merupakan salah satu penyakit zoonosis yang ditularkan ke manusia melalui gigitan atau goresan atau jilatan (pada kulit yang rusak atau selaput lendir) dari hewan yang terinfeksi, paling sering anjing. Rabies endemis di beberapa daerah di Indonesia. Jika tidak ditangani, gigitan hewan rabies dapat menyebabkan kematian. Tujuan dari penulisan ini untuk memberi informasi karakteristik kasus manusia yang fatal akibat gigitan hewan penular rabies (GHPR) di Indonesia selama kurun waktu 2016- 2017. Pengumpulan data kasus manusia dengan gigitan hewan penular rabies dari seluruh provinsi Indonesia pada tahun 2016 dan 2017 dilakukan oleh Subdirektorat Zoonosis, Direktorat Pencegahan dan Pengendalian Penyakit Tular Vektor dan Zoonosis (P2PTVZ), Direktorat Jenderal Pencegahan dan Pengendalian Penyakit (P2P). Analisis karakteristik kasus GHPR fatal meliputi aspek provinsi yang melaporkan kasus GHPR, masa inkubasi, lokasi gigitan, gejala klinis, riwayat pemberian vaksinasi dari kasus fatal dan demografi. Definisi kasus GHPR secara klinis berdasarkan Organisasi Kesehatan Dunia. Hasil menunjukkan bahwa kasus GHPR dilaporkan di 25 dari 34 provinsi. Masa inkubasi yang paling sering dilaporkan yaitu 1-2 bulan (40,7%). Lokasi gigitan terbanyak pada kaki (37,3%). Gejala klinis terbanyak yang dilaporkan hidrofobia (76,6%), diikuti dengan hipersalivasi (64,5%), kejang (35,5%), fotofobia dan hiperhidrosis masing-masing (31,2%). Demam bukan gejala utama, hanya 19,9%. Sebagian besar kasus GHPR fatal tidak mendapatkan vaksinasi pascapajanan (VAR) yang sesuai. Kasus GHPR fatal pada laki-laki lebih banyak daripada perempuan dengan perbandingan 1,8 : 1 dan jumlah orang dewasa lebih banyak dibandingkan dengan anak-anak. Disimpulkan bahwa pengobatan segera dengan pemberian vaksinasi pascapajanan secara lengkap belum dilaksanakan dengan baik pada kasus-kasus GHPR fatal yang dilaporkan.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 3293
Author(s):  
Susanna Felsenstein ◽  
Emily Willis ◽  
Hannah Lythgoe ◽  
Liza McCann ◽  
Andrew Cleary ◽  
...  

The novel Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the pathogen responsible for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Whilst most children and young people develop mild symptoms, recent reports suggest a novel paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with SARS-CoV-2 (PIMS-TS). Case definition and classification are preliminary, treatment is empiric and disease-associated outcomes are unclear. Here, we report 29 patients with PIMS-TS who were diagnosed, admitted and treated in the English North West between March and June 2020. Consistent with patterns observed internationally, cases peaked approximately 4 weeks after the initial surge of COVID-19-like symptoms in the UK population. Clinical symptoms included fever (100%), skin rashes (72%), cardiovascular involvement (86%), conjunctivitis (62%) and respiratory involvement (21%). Some patients had clinical features partially resembling Kawasaki disease (KD), toxic shock syndrome and cytokine storm syndrome. Male gender (69%), black, Asian and other minority ethnicities (BAME, 59%) were over-represented. Immune modulating treatment was used in all, including intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG), corticosteroids and cytokine blockers. Notably, 32% of patients treated with IVIG alone went into remission. The rest required additional treatment, usually corticosteroids, with the exception of two patients who were treated with TNF inhibition and IL-1 blockade, respectively. Another patient received IL-1 inhibition as primary therapy, with associated rapid and sustained remission. Randomized and prospective studies are needed to investigate efficacy and safety of treatment, especially as resources of IVIG may be depleted secondary to high demand during future waves of COVID-19.


Author(s):  
Petr Ilyin

Especially dangerous infections (EDIs) belong to the conditionally labelled group of infectious diseases that pose an exceptional epidemic threat. They are highly contagious, rapidly spreading and capable of affecting wide sections of the population in the shortest possible time, they are characterized by the severity of clinical symptoms and high mortality rates. At the present stage, the term "especially dangerous infections" is used only in the territory of the countries of the former USSR, all over the world this concept is defined as "infectious diseases that pose an extreme threat to public health on an international scale." Over the entire history of human development, more people have died as a result of epidemics and pandemics than in all wars combined. The list of especially dangerous infections and measures to prevent their spread were fixed in the International Health Regulations (IHR), adopted at the 22nd session of the WHO's World Health Assembly on July 26, 1969. In 1970, at the 23rd session of the WHO's Assembly, typhus and relapsing fever were excluded from the list of quarantine infections. As amended in 1981, the list included only three diseases represented by plague, cholera and anthrax. However, now annual additions of new infections endemic to different parts of the earth to this list take place. To date, the World Health Organization (WHO) has already included more than 100 diseases in the list of especially dangerous infections.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shankar Karuppannan ◽  
Nafyad Serre Kawo

Assessment of groundwater quality is vital for the sustainable use of the resources for domestic and agricultural purposes. In this study spatial variation of physicochemical parameters were analyzed for Northeast Adama Town. Water Quality Index (WQI) and irrigation indices were used to determine the suitability of groundwater for drinking and irrigation purposes, respectively. Further, the physical-chemical results were compared with the Ethiopian standards and the World Health Organization (WHO) standards for drinking and public health. Using GIS interpolation methods in Arc GIS 10.3.1, spatial distribution maps of pH, TDS, EC, Cl−, HCO32−, SO42−, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+ and K+, RSC, SAR, Na% were prepared. Results indicated that except ASTU well 2, all samples are below the desirable limits of WHO. The WQI results indicated that 85% of samples and 15% of samples were in good and poor categories, respectively. Irrigation indices show that the most groundwater samples have excellent water classes, indicating that they are suitable for irrigation purposes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (41) ◽  
pp. 5261-5277
Author(s):  
Peter J. Wilkin ◽  
Minnatallah Al-Yozbaki ◽  
Alex George ◽  
Girish K. Gupta ◽  
Cornelia M. Wilson

On 11th March 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) announced a pandemic caused by a novel beta-coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, designated COVID-19. The virus emerged in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, has spread across the world as a global pandemic. The traditional use of medicines from plants can be traced back to 60,000 years. Global interest in the development of drugs from natural products has increased greatly during the last few decades. Essential oils (EOs) have been studied through the centuries and are known to possess various pharmaceutical properties. In the present review, we have highlighted the current biology, epidemiology, various clinical aspects, different diagnostic techniques, clinical symptoms, and management of COVID-19. An overview of the antiviral action of EOs, along with their proposed mechanism of action and in silico studies conducted, is described. The reported studies of EOs&#039; antiviral activity highlight the baseline data about the additive and/or synergistic effects among primary or secondary phytoconstituents found in individual oils, combinations or blends of oils and between EOs and antiviral drugs. It is hoped that further research will provide better insights into EOs&#039; potential to limit viral infection and aid in providing solutions through natural, therapeutically active agents.


Author(s):  
Maithili Pramod Joshi ◽  
Ameya Chaudhari ◽  
Prashant S. Kharkar ◽  
Shreerang V. Joshi

: Historically, the use of Iodinated Contrast Media (ICM) for diagnostic purposes, particularly radiography and computed tomography (CT), is well-known. Many of the ICM are included in the World Health Organization (WHO)’s List of Essential Medicines. Depending on the chemotype and the presence of ionizable functional group(s), the ICM are categorized in the ionic/nonionic monomers/dimers. The lipophilicity, aqueous solubility, viscosity and osmolality are major characteristics dictating their use for one procedure versus the other. Over last several decades, substantial advancement occurred in the design and development of novel ICM, solely to reduce their propensity to cause adverse effects. Given the nature of their acute usage, some of the agents with appreciable toxicity are still used. Understanding their chemistry aspects is crucial to appreciate, acknowledge and justify the usage of these extremely important torch-bearers of diagnostic agent’s class. The present review article presents an in-depth overview of the synthetic methods, therapeutic indications, potential adverse effects along with the commercial and environmental aspects of ICM. The safety and tolerability of these agents is a field that has gained significant importance, which is given due importance in the discussion.


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