European zoonotic surveillance mapped - 350,000 cases in 2006
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) have published the 2006 zoonoses report, providing details of the diagnostic testing and surveillance conducted in 24 EU member states and six non-member countries. The 310-page report (available via www.efsa.europa.eu) covers a total of 17 zoonoses - infectious diseases transmissible from animals to humans. Of the more than 350,000 cases recorded in 2006, Campylobacter infections accounted for more than half, at over 175,000 diagnoses, down from just shy of 200,000 in 2005. Salmonella followed, with 161,000 cases, down from 174,000. Listeria infections - which although far less prevalent have a high fatality rate - were up 8.6%, from 1,427 cases to 1,583 in 2006.