Mosquito-borne diseases
Latest outputs
Mosquito-borne diseases
Disease / public health area
Chikungunya virus disease
Find out more about chikungunya virus disease, including basic facts, infographics, and information on surveillance, and prevention and control.
Disease / public health area
Dengue
Dengue is a mosquito-borne viral disease widely spread in tropical and subtropical regions. It is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes. Most of the clinical cases present a febrile illness, severe forms include hemorrhagic fevers and shock with fatalities.
Facts about malaria
Malaria is caused by Plasmodium parasites. During the 20th century, malaria was eradicated from many temperate areas, including the whole of the EU. As a result, the disease is now essentially limited to tropical countries. Due to the large number of imported cases in Europe, malaria is mainly a travel medicine issue.
Facts about Rift Valley fever
Rift Valley fever is an acute viral febrile haemorrhagic disease that affects primarily ruminants in Africa and in the Arabian Peninsula: cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats and camels. Humans may become infected by mosquito bites and through direct or indirect contact with the blood or organs of infected animals.
Facts about Sindbis fever
Sindbis virus is widely and continuously found in insects (the main vectors are Culex and Culiseta mosquitoes) and vertebrates in Eurasia, Africa, and Oceania. ECDC factsheet for health professionals
Facts about yellow fever
Yellow fever (YF) is a mosquito-borne infection, distributed in west, central and east Africa and in South America. The disease can cause a wide spectrum of symptoms, from mild to fatal. In severe cases there may be spontaneous haemorrhage. Mortality of these clinical cases can be as high as 80%, on a par with Ebola, Marburg and other haemorrhagic viral infections.
Factsheet about chikungunya
Chikungunya is a viral disease transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes to humans. The word ‘chikungunya’ means 'that which bends up', an allusion to the posture of the suffering patients. The most common symptom is joint pain.
Factsheet about dengue
Dengue is a mosquito-borne viral disease widely spread in tropical and subtropical regions. The disease is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes.
Factsheet about Japanese encephalitis
Japanese encephalitis virus is present in Asia and Oceania, from Japan to India, Pakistan and Australia. Outbreaks are erratic and spatially and temporally limited phenomena, occurring quite unpredictably. The virus is a leading cause of viral encephalitis in Asia, with 30 000 to 50 000 cases reported annually.
Factsheet about West Nile virus infection
West Nile virus is a mosquito-borne flavivirus that is maintained in an enzootic cycle between mosquitoes and birds. Humans and horses are incidental dead-end hosts.
Factsheet about Zika virus disease
Most Zika virus infections are either asymptomatic or cause a mild illness with a transient maculopapular rash. However, there is scientific consensus that Zika virus is a cause of microcephaly, congenital nervous system malformations and Guillain-Barré syndrome.
Data
Factsheet on Chikungunya for health practitioners
Information for health practitioners: vectors, clinical presentation, risk of local transmission, complications
Data
Factsheet on Chikungunya for the general public
Chikungunya is a virus that is transmitted from human to human mainly by infected Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.
Data
Factsheet on Chikungunya for travellers
How do humans become infected by Chikungunya? How can I prevent becoming infected by Chikungunya?
Disease / public health area
Japanese encephalitis
The Japanese encephalitis virus is present in Asia, from Japan to India and Pakistan, and outbreaks are erratic and spatially and temporally limited phenomena, occurring quite unpredictably, even if all conditions appear to be present in a definite place. It is a leading cause of viral encephalitis in Asia, with 30-50,000 cases reported annually. Most human infections are asymptomatic. On average, one person in 200 infected develops a severe neuroinvasive illness. The case fatality rate in patients with severe disease is 20- 30%
Disease / public health area
Malaria
Malaria is caused by Plasmodium parasites. During the 20th century, malaria was eradicated from many temperate areas, including the whole of the EU, and is now limited to tropical countries. Due to the large number of imported cases in Europe, malaria is mainly a travel medicine issue.
Disease / public health area
Rift Valley fever
Rift Valley fever is an acute viral febrile haemorrhagic disease that affects primarily ruminants in Africa and in the Arabian Peninsula: cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats and camels. Humans may become infected by mosquito bites and through direct or indirect contact with the blood or organs of infected animals.
Disease / public health area
Sindbis fever
Sindbis virus is widely and continuously found in insects, such as Culex mosquitoes, in Eurasia, Africa, and Oceania. However, clinical infection in humans has almost exclusively been reported in northern Europe where it is endemic and where large outbreaks occur intermittently.
Disease / public health area
West Nile virus infection
West Nile virus (WNV) infection is a mosquito-borne zoonosis. The virus is transmitted among birds via the bite of infected mosquitoes and incidentally humans and other mammals may become infected.
Disease / public health area
Yellow fever
Yellow fever (YF) cause a wide spectrum of symptoms, from mild to fatal. In severe cases there may be spontaneous haemorrhage. Mortality of these clinical cases can be as high as 80%, on a par with Ebola, Marburg and other haemorrhagic viral infections.
Disease / public health area
Zika virus disease
Zika virus disease is a mosquito-borne disease caused by Zika virus. Most infections are either asymptomatic or cause a mild illness. However, there is now a strong consensus in the scientific community about the link between Zika infection and congenital malformations, as well as developing Guillain–Barré (GBS) syndrome.