In connection with the European Immunization Week, ECDC releases data indicating an increase in cases of vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles and pertussis, after decreased levels during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since January 2022, and as of 11 August 2023, 281 confirmed diphtheria cases, as per the EU case definition (2022: 224 cases, 2023: 57 cases), and four deaths were reported in the EU/EEA.
As of 26 September 2022, 92 cases of diphtheria among migrants, including a fatal one, have been reported this year by seven European countries – Austria, Germany, United Kingdom, Norway, Belgium, France and Switzerland.
The number of reported human cases of illness caused by Campylobacter and Salmonella bacteria across Europe appears to have stabilised over the past five years, according to the latest report on zoonotic diseases by EFSA and ECDC.
Nearly one in three foodborne outbreaks in the EU in 2018 were caused by Salmonella. This is one of the main findings of the annual report on trends and sources of zoonoses published today by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
This letter to the editor raises the issue of the adaptation of B. pertussis to vaccine selection pressure as one of the reasons for the increase number of cases of whooping cough reported in several countries.
Starting 15 September 2011, ECDC will be coordinating the former EUVAC.NET network. It is a surveillance network covering measles, mumps, rubella, congenital rubella, pertussis and varicella EU Member States and three countries of the European Economic Area. Data will be hosted by the European Surveillance System (TESSy) at ECDC.