KEY FACTS In 2015, 439 confirmed brucellosis cases were reported in the EU/EEA.  The notification rate in the EU/EEA was 0.1 cases per 100 000 population.  The highest rate was detected in 25–64-year-old males (0.14 cases per 100 000 population).  The notification rate was stable during the period 2011–2015.  The highest rates were reported in southern Member States (Greece, Bulgaria, and Portugal). (source ECDC: Annual Epidemiological report for 2015)

Abstract Brucellosis due to Brucella suis biovar 2 is one of the most important endemic diseases in wild boar (Sus scrofa) populations in Europe. The aim of the present study was to determine the seroprevalence of brucellosis in wild boars in the eastern part of Latvia. Wild boars killed by hunters in the period from January to April 2015 (n = 877) and from March to April in 2016 (n = 167) were examined for antibodies against B. suis by the Rose Bengal test (RBT), a complement fixation test (CFT), and by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. In 2015, 199 samples (22.7%) were positive by RBT and/or CFT while 36 samples (21.6%) were seropositive in 2016. Of the Brucella seropositive samples from 2015 and 2016 (n = 235), 162 (68.9%) were also seropositive to Yersinia enterocolitica. Considering cross-reactivity of serological tests, the seroprevalence of B. suis biovar 2 exposure in wild boars in the eastern part of Latvia was calculated to 14.0% in 2015 and 9.6% in 2016. From selected seropositive samples (42 in 2015 and 36 in 2016) total DNA was extracted and analyzed with an IS711-based nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. Species and biovar identification was conducted for bacteria isolated in monoculture from PCR positive samples by species specific primers and Bruce-ladder multiplex PCR. Brucella suis biovar 2 was isolated from 12/20 samples in 2015 and 9/9 samples in 2016. The average seroprevalence was relatively low compared to that found in certain other European countries. Males and females had an equal level of seropositivity, but a positive age-trend was observed for both males and females.

For any information, please contact Dr Guillaume Girault (guillaume.girault@anses.fr).    

DOI: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2018.01.005

Frozen corn is the likely source of an outbreak of Listeria monocytogeneswhich has affected five EU Member States (Austria, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom) since 2015. This is the conclusion of a rapid outbreak assessment published today by EFSA and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). As of 8 March 2018, 32 cases including six deaths had been reported.  

♦ 12 February 2018 ♦ [Relayed from GARC website] In 2016, WHO, OIE, FAO, and many NGOs released a framework to achieve the joint goal of eliminating dog-mediated human rabies by 2030. But the goal requires overcoming substantial challenges. Dog-rabies endemic countries are at different stages in their control efforts; most countries have to overcome important hurdles […].Drawing from multiple datasets […], researchers at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) roughly estimated the resources needed to achieve the elimination of dog-mediated human rabies deaths by 2030, […]. Their aim was to describe the global rabies situation, highlighting some of the main challenges that may complicate elimination efforts in a consistent framework, the Global Dog Rabies Elimination Pathway (GDREP). The GDREP focuses of four key factors that determine [read more…]  

♦ 31 January 2018 ♦ [Relayed from WHO website] “The new WHO recommendations for rabies immunization supersede the 2010 WHO position on pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for rabies. These updated recommendations are based on new evidence and directed by public health needs that are cost-, dose- and time-sparing, while assuring safety and clinical effectiveness. In addition, new guidance on prudent use of rabies immunoglobulin (RIG) is provided. The […] sections summarize the main points of the updated WHO position as endorsed by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on immunization (SAGE) at its meeting in October 2017. The full version of the WHO position on rabies vaccines and immunoglobulins will be published in the Weekly Epidemiological Record in April 2018. (Read more…)”. Read le document.

♦  12 March 2018 ♦ [Relayed from the Euroreference website] This journal is “now co-edited by several EU member state institutions dealing with reference laboratory activities in animal and plant health or food and drinking water safety as well as by EPPO.” The “aim is to convert Euroreference to a truly European journal, thus strengthening the network of EU laboratories working in these sectors and consolidate EU efficiency, by facilitating the dissemination of information about reference activities among stakeholders at European level.” Issue 3 of the journal can be downloaded here.

♦ 26 January 2018 ♦ [Relayed from www.efsa.europa.eu website] “This reporting manual provides guidance for reporting on zoonoses and zoonotic agents in animals, food and feed under the framework of Directive 2003/99/EC and also on the reporting of other pathogenic microbiological agents in food. The objective is to harmonise and streamline reporting by Member States (MSs) to ensure that the data collected are relevant and easy to analyse at the European Union (EU) level. This manual covers all the zoonoses and zoonotic agents included under the current data collection system run by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Detailed instructions are provided on reporting data in both table and text form. […] The instructions given are related to the description of the sampling and monitoring schemes applied, as well as analysing the results in the national reports. […]”. Rabies part can be found in chapter “5.11. Rabies in animals” page 57 of the manual.