In 2022, 27 European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries reported 731 echinococcosis cases. Of these, 299 (41%) cases were reported as Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato, 185 (25%) as E. multilocularis and 247 (34%) as an unknown species.
Campylobacteriosis and salmonellosis were the most frequently reported zoonotic diseases in humans in the EU in 2022. For West Nile virus, an increase of the number of infections was observed.
Despite good access to effective antibiotics, Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococci) is still a major cause of disease and death in both developing and developed countries. Pneumococci are the main cause of bacterial respiratory tract infections, such as pneumonia, middle ear infection, and sinusitis, in all age groups.
Poliovirus is highly contagious and infected individuals shed virus in the faeces and from oral secretions, thus the mode of transmission is person-to-person, both via the faecal-oral and the oral-oral routes.
This issue of the ECDC Communicable Disease Threats Report (CDTR) covers the period 16-22 July 2023 and includes updates on avian influenza, Echovirus 11, COVID-19, West Nile virus, poliomyelitis, and botulism.
Globally, as of 9 August, 19 cases of polio due to wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) and 223 cases due to circulating vaccine derived poliovirus (cVDPV) have been reported this year. In 2022, the cVDPV cases have been reported in 15 countries, with 93% of the cases attributed to cVDPV type 2 (cVDPV2).