For 2018, 11 312 cases of mumps were reported to ECDC by 28 EU/EEA Member States with an overall notification rate of 2.6 cases per 100 000 population.

ECDC has mapped the detection and characterisation capability and capacity for SARS-CoV-2 variants across the EU/EEA. This is the fifth laboratory capacity survey since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in December 2019.

This risk assessment provides an overall update on the COVID-19 situation in the EU/EEA, including latest data on the situation with SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern covered by previous targeted risk assessments.

This technical report reviews the evidence that has been accumulated since the emergence of COVID-19, in addition to what has existed on this topic prior to the pandemic, and updates the ECDC opinion on the suitability of using face masks in the community published on 9 April 2020.

This surveillance protocol seeks to enable countries to report their existing national surveillance data on COVID-19 in LTCFs easily and regularly. This will enable ECDC to report national trends in the EU/EEA, with the aim of providing all EU/EEA countries with timely information to support their preparedness activities for LTCFs.

This issue of the ECDC Communicable Disease Threats Report (CDTR) covers the period 7-13 February 2021 and includes updates on COVID-19, seasonal and avian influenza, measles and Ebola virus disease.

For 2019, 21 countries in the EU/EEA reported 1 463 confirmed cases of tularaemia.

This document aims to provide guidance to EU/EEA healthcare facilities and healthcare providers on infection prevention and control (IPC) measures for the management of suspected and confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection in healthcare settings, including long-term care facilities. It also offers guidance on the management of specimens at laboratories in the EU/EEA.