Dutch health authorities have recently reported an increase of hepatitis A infections particularly affecting men who have sex with men. With the on-going Pride events across Europe, ECDC stresses the importance of ensuring hepatitis A vaccination, (advice for) safer sex and personal hygiene practices including washing hands and genital areas before and after sex to avoid infection.
Targeted testing is an essential element of any strategy to eliminate viral hepatitis across the countries in the European Union and European Economic Area. Some preliminary monitoring results on the response to hepatitis B and C presented around World Hepatitis Day show that diagnosing chronic infections is still a challenge in the EU/EEA.
In 2017, the majority (58%) of the almost 27 000 newly reported hepatitis B cases in the European Union and European Economic Area were classified as chronic infections. This follows a consistent upward trend in reported chronic hepatitis B cases since 2008.
In order to maximise the benefits of treatment for HIV or viral hepatitis, it is critical to test and diagnose people as soon as possible in the course of the infection. ECDC supports this objective of European Testing Week.
In 2017, 31 273 cases of hepatitis C were reported in 29 EU/EEA Member States. Excluding countries that only reported acute cases, 31 178 cases corresponds to a crude rate of 7.3 cases per 100 000 population.
The latest ECDC/WHO report Tuberculosis surveillance and monitoring in Europe 2019 (2017 data) shows that despite an overall decline in numbers of people suffering from TB, the disease remains a major public health challenge in the Region.