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Eurosurveillance
Since 1995, Eurosurveillance has provided the European public health community with an open-access platform to exchange relevant findings on communicable disease surveillance, prevention and control. A weekly, electronic, peer-reviewed publication, Eurosurveillance aims to provide timely facts and guidance for public health professionals and decision-makers in the field of infectious disease to facilitate the implementation of effective prevention and control measures. Impact factor: 9.9. More...
Latest Issue: Volume 30, Issue 23, 12 June 2025 Latest Issue RSS feed
- Surveillance
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Epidemiological changes in Chlamydia pneumoniae molecular detections before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in 27 European sites and Taiwan, 2018 to 2023
Florian Tagini , Søren Anker Uldum , Carla Berengua , Branislav Ivan , Riccarda Capaul , Sophie Edouard , Adrien Fischer , Jacky Flipse , Diego García Martínez de Artola , Daniel Goldenberger , Edou Heddema , Mirjam Hermans , Frank Imkamp , Darja Keše , Clara Lejarraga , Reto Lienhard , Carola Maffioli , Veerle Matheeussen , Patrick M Meyer Sauteur , Irena Mitrovic , Onya Opota , Christina Orasch , Pavel Drevinek , Olivia Peuchant , Liu Po-Yu , Mirja Puolakkainen , Melissa Remy , Khoa TD Thai , Nadia Wohlwend , Gilbert Greub and on behalf of the ESCMID Study Group for Mycoplasma and Chlamydia infections (ESGMAC)BackgroundDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) such as social distancing, lockdowns and enhanced hygiene led to a decrease in respiratory pathogens. However, as NPIs were relaxed, a resurgence in several respiratory pathogens was observed including one local Chlamydia pneumoniae outbreak in Switzerland, prompting the need for a better understanding of C. pneumoniae epidemiology.
AimTo assess temporal and geographical variations in C. pneumoniae detection before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
MethodsData on C. pneumoniae PCR detection ratios (number of positive tests/ total number of tests) across pre-pandemic (2018–2019), pandemic (2020–2022) and post-pandemic (2023) periods were collected via a global survey disseminated through various professional networks.
ResultsC. pneumoniae detection ratios were analysed across 28 sites (27 in Europe, one in Taiwan) in 2023 (Dataset A, n = 172,223 tests) and 20 sites from 2018 to 2023 (Dataset B, n = 693,106 tests). Twenty-seven sites were laboratories (hospital or clinical) and one a surveillance system (Denmark). A significant decrease in detection ratios was observed during the pandemic period (from 1.05% to 0.23%, p < 0.001). In 2023, detection ratios increased to 0.28% (p < 0.002). Notable regional variations were found, with statistically significant increases in detection ratios at six sites located in Switzerland and Slovenia, where ratios ranged from 0.52% to 3.25%.
DiscussionThe study highlights how NPIs influenced C. pneumoniae epidemiology, with reduced detection during the pandemic and partial resurgence afterwards. Regional variations suggest differing NPI impacts and underscore the need for continued surveillance.
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- Research
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Influenza vaccine effectiveness in Europe and the birth cohort effect against influenza A(H1N1)pdm09: VEBIS primary care multicentre study, 2023/24
Esther Kissling , Marine Maurel , Francisco Pozo , Gloria Pérez-Gimeno , Silke Buda , Noémie Sève , Lisa Domegan , Mariëtte Hooiveld , Beatrix Oroszi , Iván Martínez-Baz , Raquel Guiomar , Neus Latorre-Margalef , Ivan Mlinarić , Mihaela Lazar , Jaume Giménez Duran , Ralf Dürrwald , Vincent Enouf , Adele McKenna , Marit de Lange , Gergő Túri , Camino Trobajo-Sanmartín , Verónica Gomez , Tove Samuelsson Hagey , Vesna Višekruna Vučina , Maria Carmen Cherciu , Miriam García Vazquez , Annika Erdwiens , Shirley Masse , Charlene Bennett , Adam Meijer , Katalin Kristóf , Jesús Castilla , Ana Paula Rodrigues , Sanja Kurečić Filipović , Alina Elena Ivanciuc , Sabrina Bacci , Marlena Kaczmarek and on behalf of the European primary care VE groupIntroductionInfluenza A(H1N1)pdm09, A(H3N2) and B/Victoria viruses circulated in Europe in 2023/24, with A(H1N1)pdm09 dominance. First influenza infections in childhood may lead to different vaccine effectiveness (VE) in subsequent years.
AimThe VEBIS primary care network estimated influenza VE in Europe using a multicentre test‐negative study.
MethodsPrimary care practitioners collected information and specimens from patients consulting with acute respiratory infection. We estimated VE against influenza (sub)type and clade, by age group and by year of age for A(H1N1)pdm09, using logistic regression.
ResultsWe included 29,958 patients, with 3,054, 1,053 and 311 influenza A(H1N1)pdm09, A(H3N2) and B cases, respectively. All-age VE against influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 was 52% (95% CI: 44–59). By year of age, VE was 27% (95% CI: −2 to 47) at 44 years with peaks at 72% (95% CI: 52–84) and 54% (95% CI: 41–64) among children and those 65 years and older, respectively. All-age A(H1N1)pdm09 VE against clade 5a.2a was 41% (95% CI: 24–54) and −11% (95% CI: −69 to 26) against clade 5a.2a.1. The A(H3N2) VE was 35% (95% CI: 20–48) among all ages and ranged between 34% and 40% by age group. All-age VE against clade 2a.3a.1 was 38% (95% CI: 1–62). All-age VE against B/Victoria was 83% (95% CI: 65–94), ranging between 70 and 92% by age group.
DiscussionThe 2023/24 VEBIS primary care VE against medically attended symptomatic influenza infection was high against influenza B/Victoria, but lower against influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 and A(H3N2). Clade- and age-specific effects may have played a role in the lower A(H1N1)pdm09 VE.
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Beyond patient contact: combined short- and long read sequencing reveals continuous occurrence of genomically related carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales and plasmid mobility in a hospital, Germany, 2018 to 2021
BACKGROUNDCarbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) frequently cause nosocomial outbreaks. To investigate these, tracing focused on patients with related CPE strains and spatiotemporal contact (e.g. contact with each other in a room or on a ward during overlapping periods) has limitations. Moreover, as widely available molecular typing methods cannot detect plasmid-related transmissions, carbapenemase gene transfer across enteric bacteria through plasmids in hospitals remains poorly understood.
AIMBecause whole-genome sequencing (WGS), particularly long-read sequencing, can offer insights into bacterial relationships both at core-genome and plasmid levels, we tested its utility, using VIM-CPE as example, to investigate plasmid and CPE spread in a hospital beyond outbreaks.
METHODSWe included inpatient episodes from 2018 to 2021 involving blaVIM-bearing CPE isolates. Short- and long-read WGS data were combined with patient movement information to identify genomically related hospital-acquired VIM-CPE and putative transmission routes.
RESULTSAmong 43 included inpatient episodes, 27 isolates were hospital-acquired, with 23 genomically related based on core-genome or plasmid analyses. For 14 of these 23 isolates, patient movement data supported suspected transmission events. Plasmid and core-genome level analyses revealed that most transmission events did not temporally concur, occurring over up to 33 months. Thus, conventional infection tracing methods focusing on concurrent spatiotemporal contact missed a substantial proportion of transmission events.
CONCLUSIONWith our findings, we advocate for broader epidemiological investigations of temporal connections if genomic data suggest relatedness. We emphasise considering plasmid transfer alongside analyses of core-genome relatedness of bacteria beyond patient contact events to study CPE and resistance spread, and guide infection control strategies.
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Recent articles
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Molecular detection of Toxoplasma gondii in ready-to-eat salad mixes: multi-country survey using a validated and harmonised standard operating procedure, Europe, 2021 to 2022
Rafael Calero-Bernal , Martha Betson , Iva Slana , Barbora Bartosova , Gianluca Marucci , Alessia Possenti , Gema Álvarez-García , Nadja Bier , Anne Mayer-Scholl , Rebecca P Berg , Umer Chaudhry , Nadia M López-Ureña , Weronika Piotrowska , Jacek Sroka , Gro S Johannessen , Rebecca Davidson , Filip Dámek , Radu Blaga , Sandra Thoumire , Barbora Zalewská , Helga C Waap , Pikka Jokelainen and Marco Lalle
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Genomic insights into the re-emergence of chikungunya virus on Réunion Island, France, 2024 to 2025
Etienne Frumence , Géraldine Piorkowski , Nicolas Traversier , Rayane Amaral , Muriel Vincent , Ambroise Mercier , Nazli Ayhan , Laurent Souply , Laura Pezzi , Clément Lier , Gilda Grard , Guillaume André Durand , Chikungunya genomics diagnostic laboratory network , Xavier Deparis , Fabian Thouillot , Xavier de Lamballerie , Raphaelle Klitting and Marie-Christine Jaffar-Bandjee
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Acute flaccid myelitis in Europe between 2016 and 2023: indicating the need for better registration
Jelte Helfferich , Cristina Calvo , Ekkehardt Alpeter , Cristina Andrés , Andrés Antón , Melodie Aubart , Stefania Maria Bova , Maria Cabrerizo , Karin von Eije , Stollar Fabiola , Ana Felipe , Ralitsa Iordanova , Marianne Kragh Thomsen , Per Kristian Knudsen , Freek van Loenen , Noemi Lopez , Audrey Mirand , Richard Molenkamp , Sofie Midgley , Raquel Neves , Lubomira Nikolaeva Glomb , Joakim Øverbø , Gülten Öztürk , Paula Palminha , Helle Cecilie Viekilde Pfeiffer , Birgit Prochazka , Carlos Ribeiro , Martine Rodesch , Isabelle Schuffenecker , Jay Shetty , Sandy Siegert , Silje Lae Solberg , Artur Sulik , Dilşad Türkdoğan , Olcay Ünver , Jaco Verweij , Jorgina Vila , Tytti Vuorinen , Ronny Wickström , Thea K Fischer , Heli Harvala and Kimberley S.M. Benschop
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