In July–November 2009, 26 European Union Member States, Norway and Iceland, participated in a survey seeking information on national tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) vaccination recommendations.
This initiative was taken following the indication of a potential association between the 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1) monvalent vaccine and the occurrence of narcolepsy following reports, especially in children from Finland and Sweden.
European and Asian viruses within the tick-borne encephalitis Flavivirus complex are known to show temporal, spatial and phylogenetic relationships that imply a clinal pattern of evolution.
This paper is a really nice analysis of results provided by a national tick surveillance program conducted from 2005 and 2009 in Great Britain by HPA. This study shows that useful information on tick distribution and ecology can be obtained from passive surveillance based on punctual records from public, veterinarians, clinicians, wildlife charities and academics from across Great Britain.
In this paper, the authors present results produced by a two-year screening study on ticks from Sardinia for different tick-associated pathogens. They show that Rhipicephalus sanguineus is predominant and presents the most important diversity of pathogens, with its counterpart Rhipicephalus turanicus.
This factsheet provides key information on seasonal influenza and is targeting healthcare professionals. The factsheet is a part of the ECDC "Communication guidelines on how to increase influenza vaccination uptake and promote preventive measures to limit its spread".