This issue of the ECDC Communicable Disease Threats Report (CDTR) the period 17-23 March 2024 and includes updates on SARS-CoV-2 variant classification, hepatitis A, pertussis, invasive Group A streptococcal infection, chikungunya, dengue, poliomyelitis, western equine encephalitis and cholera.
The food-borne infections listeriosis and shigatoxigenic Escherichia coli are increasing in the EU/EEA and were in 2022 at levels higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2022, 30 EU/EEA countries reported 4 548 cases of hepatitis A. The EU/EEA notification rate was one case per 100 000 population. Twenty EU/EEA countries had notification rates below one case per 100 000 population. The countries with the highest notification rates were Hungary (5.5), Croatia (5.3) Romania (4.8), and Bulgaria (4.4).
Arenaviruses are a type of small virus commonly found in rodents. When a person becomes infected with an arenavirus, symptoms usually begin within 10 days.
For 2021, 26 European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries reported data on Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) and only one country reported any cases.