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Severi E, Tavoschi L, Carrillo-Santisteve P, Westrell T, Marrone G, Giesecke J, Lopalco P. Hepatitis A notifications in the EU/EEA, 2010-2019: what can we learn from case reporting to the European Surveillance System? Euro Surveill 2023; 28:2200575. [PMID: 37166764 PMCID: PMC10176831 DOI: 10.2807/1560-7917.es.2023.28.19.2200575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023] Open
Abstract
BackgroundEuropean Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries annually report hepatitis A (HepA) notifications to The European Surveillance System (TESSy).AimTo describe EU/EEA HepA notifications from 2010 to 2019 and identify infection drivers and surveillance improvements.MethodsWe analysed demographic, clinical and transmission information of HepA confirmed cases from TESSy. We stratified countries by population susceptibility profile and performed time-series analysis to describe trends in notification rates, sex distribution and travel history.ResultsTwenty-nine EU/EEA countries reported 139,793 HepA cases. Six eastern EU countries reported > 60% of these cases. EU/EEA notification rate during the study period was 3.2 cases per 100,000 population (range 2.7-5.6). Notifications peaked in 2014 and 2017, with marked differences in case demographic characteristics. Notification trends varied across different country susceptibility groups. In 2017, the proportion of males (74%) and case median age (31 years) increased steeply, while no changes occurred in 2014. Travel history showed seasonal case peaks following the summer. More than 47,000 hospitalisations were reported. Annual case fatality was < 0.2% for all years. Information on travel history, hospitalisation, death and mode of transmission was suboptimal.DiscussionApart from some countries in its east, the EU/EEA is characterised by low HepA incidence baseline and susceptible to recurrent large cross-border outbreaks. Analysis of European surveillance data highlighted the need for stronger prevention policies for eastern EU countries, men who have sex with men and travellers. Improving surveillance data-quality will enhance knowledge on food-borne, and travel-related exposures to inform more effective and tailored regional prevention policies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ettore Severi
- European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Stockholm, Sweden
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Lara Tavoschi
- University of Pisa, Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, Pisa, Italy
| | | | - Therese Westrell
- European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Gaetano Marrone
- European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Johan Giesecke
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Pierluigi Lopalco
- University of Salento, Department of Biological and Environmental Science and Technology, Lecce, Italy
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An outbreak of hepatitis A virus infection in a secondary school in England with no undetected asymptomatic transmission among students. Epidemiol Infect 2022; 151:e6. [PMID: 36502811 PMCID: PMC9990387 DOI: 10.1017/s095026882200190x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In June 2019 the Health Protection Team in Yorkshire and Humber, England, was notified of cases of hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection in staff at a secondary school. Investigation revealed that an earlier case worked as a food handler in the school kitchen. Indirect transmission through food from the canteen was considered the most likely route of transmission. Cases were described according to setting of exposure. Oral fluid was obtained from students for serological testing. Environmental investigations were undertaken at settings where food handling was considered a potential transmission risk. Thirty-three confirmed cases were linked to the outbreak. All of those tested (n = 31) shared the same sequence with a HAV IB genotype. The first three cases were a household cluster and included the index case for the school. A further 19 cases (16 students, 3 staff) were associated with the school and consistent with indirect exposure to the food handler. One late onset case could not be ruled out as a secondary case within the school and resulted in vaccination of the school population. Five cases were linked to a bakery where a case from the initial household cluster worked as a food server. No concerns about hygiene standards were noted at either the school or the bakery. Oral fluid samples taken at the time of vaccination from asymptomatic students (n = 219, 11-16 years-old) showed no evidence of recent or current infection. This outbreak included household and foodborne transmission but limited (and possibly zero) person-to-person transmission among secondary school students. Where adequate hygiene exists, secondary transmission within older students may not occur.
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Ijaz S, Dicks S, Jegatheesan K, Parker E, Katsanovskaja K, Vink E, McClure MO, Shute J, Hope J, Cook N, Cherepanov P, Turtle L, Paxton WA, Pollakis G, Ho A, Openshaw PJM, Baillie JK, Semple MG, Tedder RS. Mapping of SARS-CoV-2 IgM and IgG in gingival crevicular fluid: Antibody dynamics and linkage to severity of COVID-19 in hospital inpatients. J Infect 2022; 85:152-160. [PMID: 35667482 PMCID: PMC9163047 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinf.2022.05.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/29/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Samreen Ijaz
- Blood Borne Virus Unit, Reference Department, UK Health Security Agency, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ, UK.
| | - Steve Dicks
- Blood Borne Virus Unit, Reference Department, UK Health Security Agency, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ, UK; NHS Blood and Transplant, London, UK
| | - Keerthana Jegatheesan
- Blood Borne Virus Unit, Reference Department, UK Health Security Agency, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ, UK; NHS Blood and Transplant, London, UK
| | - Eleanor Parker
- Department of Infectious Disease, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | | | - Elen Vink
- Medical Research Council, University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, UK
| | - Myra O McClure
- Department of Infectious Disease, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - J Shute
- Blood Borne Virus Unit, Reference Department, UK Health Security Agency, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ, UK
| | - Joshua Hope
- Chromatin Structure and Mobile DNA Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
| | - Nicola Cook
- Chromatin Structure and Mobile DNA Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
| | - Peter Cherepanov
- Department of Infectious Disease, Imperial College London, London, UK; Chromatin Structure and Mobile DNA Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
| | - Lance Turtle
- Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK; Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool, UK
| | - William A Paxton
- Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK; NIHR Health Protection Research Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, Department of Clinical Infection, Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Georgios Pollakis
- Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK; NIHR Health Protection Research Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, Department of Clinical Infection, Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Antonia Ho
- Medical Research Council, University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, UK
| | | | | | - Malcolm G Semple
- Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK; Department of Respiratory Medicine, Alder Hey Children's Hospital, Liverpool, UK
| | - Richard S Tedder
- Department of Infectious Disease, Imperial College London, London, UK
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