The ECDC communicable disease threats report is a weekly bulletin intended for epidemiologists and health professionals in the area of communicable disease prevention and control
An increase in cryptosporidiosis notifications has been observed in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany since August 2012 that is likely to be real, and not due to surveillance or notification artefacts.
Cryptosporidia are intestinal parasites infecting a variety of animals (e.g. cattle, sheep, rodents, cats and dogs, but also birds, fish and reptiles). Human infections occur due to Cryptosporidium parvum, a species that also affects domestic animals.