Immunisation is the cornerstone of polio eradication. Two types of vaccine are available: an inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) and a live attenuated OPV.
An outbreak of Zika virus infections affected the Americas and the Pacific region. On 1 February 2016 WHO declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) regarding clusters of microcephaly cases and neurological disorders in some areas affected by Zika virus.
The joint annual influenza surveillance meeting by ECDC and the WHO Regional Office for Europe took place on 6 - 8 June 2018 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Invited participants were epidemiological and virological surveillance experts nominated by national health authorities as well as representatives from international institutions, covering the 53 countries of the EU/EEA and the WHO European region. The meeting was by invitation only.
The meeting focused on the evidence base for the revision of the updated “Guide to public health measures to reduce the impact of influenza pandemics in Europe”, with a specific emphasis on non-pharmaceutical countermeasures for pandemic flu.
The European public health and blood authorities responded to the threat posed by West Nile virus to blood safety of blood and blood components by adopting preventive measures which are defined in the EU blood legislation, professional guides of the Council of Europe and the EU WNV blood transfusion preparedness plan. The measures include the deferral of blood donors that have visited or residing in a NUTS 3 area considered to be affected (i.e. with at least one confirmed case).
The European Commission had an ongoing open public consultation on ‘strengthened cooperation against vaccine-preventable diseases’ which ran until 15 March 2018. The objective of this consultation was to collect the views and input of citizens, administrations, associations and other relevant organisations to feed into the process of drafting a proposal for a Council Recommendation to be adopted in mid-2018.
Influenza pandemics, whether mild, moderate or severe, affect a large proportion of the population and require a multisectoral response over several months or even years. For this reason, countries develop plans describing their strategies for responding to a pandemic supported by operational plans at national and subnational levels.
ECDC Scientific advice provides a summary of data and information (i.e., primary evidence) to support informed decisions and actions at the Union and country level in relation to public health measures to prevent and/or control communicable diseases.
ECDC’s annual surveillance reports provide a wealth of epidemiological data to support decision-making at the national level. They are mainly intended for public health professionals and policymakers involved in disease prevention and control programmes.
The ERLI-Net sub-network of reference laboratories of the European Influenza Surveillance Network carries out virological surveillance of human influenza in the EU/EEA through the EISN timely reporting mechanism and strengthening laboratory capacity for influenza virus detection, antiviral susceptibility testing and typing.