The authors analysed samples from travellers returning from the tropics with acute dengue infections between 2002 and 2008.

​An international consensus study on standardisation of a widely developed molecular subtyping method for Salmonella Typhimurium, multiple loci variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA), was published by Nadon et al. in Eurosurveillance on 29 August 2013

​Almost 1 in 10 people worldwide fall ill every year after eating contaminated food which commonly causes bacterial diarrhoea, resulting in 230 000 deaths each year.

Since the ECDC and EFSA joint rapid outbreak assessment was published on 7 March 2017, six EU Member States (Belgium, France, Italy, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom) have reported 50 confirmed and 12 probable new cases associated with the multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis phage type 8 infections (MLVA profiles 2-9-7-3-2 and 2-9-6-3-2) ongoing in the EU/EEA. In addition, twelve probable cases have been reclassified as confirmed.

Since the previous ECDC epidemiological update was published on 30 June 2017, seven EU/EEA countries (Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom) have reported 96 confirmed and 34 probable new cases associated with the multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis with MLVA profiles 2-9-7-3-2 or 2-9-6-3-2 ongoing in the EU/EEA.

Since the publication of the rapid risk assessment on a multi-country outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes serogroup IVb, multi-locus sequence type 6 (MLST 6) on 6 December 2017, four EU Member States reported seven new confirmed outbreak cases. Two of these cases were fatal.

Can whole genome sequencing illustrate changes in drug susceptibility of gonorrhoea to antimicrobials used for treatment and so help to define more effective treatment regimens? The first study of this kind within an international surveillance programme for sexually transmitted infections shows distribution of drug-resistant gonorrhoea strains across Europe.

The EU/EEA countries are making great progress in the implementation of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) technology for outbreak investigation and surveillance. With a harmonisation of standards, this will enable exchange of WGS-derived data across the EU/EEA as prioritised in the ECDC Roadmap for molecular surveillance and improve disease control and prevention in Europe.

Since the joint ECDC-EFSA rapid outbreak assessment ’Multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis infections linked to Polish eggs’ published on 12 December 2017, 15 EU/EEA countries (Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden and United Kingdom) have reported 336 confirmed, 94 probable and 3 new historical-confirmed cases associated with this ongoing multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis in the EU/EEA. In the same period, seven historical probable cases were reclassified as excluded.

ECDC is looking to establish a scientific collaboration with an organisation which can perform whole genome sequencing (WGS) of Neisseria gonorrhoeae, carry out related data analyses, share results of the analyses with ECDC and the participants of the European Gonococcal Antimicrobial Surveillance Programme as well as visualise the results.