Cases of West Nile virus are being reported in various places in Italy. It is not the first tropical disease to recently hit the country.
Cagliari – The main holiday season is over, but Italy still remains in the headlines here. An earthquake occurred in the Tuscany region on Monday (September 18). A brutal act of violence in Sirmione on Lake Garda also shocked people.
West Nile fever in Italy: Infections on Sardinia and the Adriatic coast
And now the southern European country is also struggling with some cases of the insidious West Nile fever. These have been recorded in Sardinia and on the northern Adriatic around Venice. The news portals reported this South Tyrol News and today.at.
On the Mediterranean island of Sardinia, a 51-year-old man with severe symptoms similar to meningitis had to go to a clinic after being infected with the West Nile virus. He is being treated at the San Martino Hospital in Oristano and his condition is said to be stable.
West Nile fever in Italy: Cases also detected in Greece and Cyprus
Loud South Tyrol News Another case was discovered in Sardinia in August, and there were also infections with the West Nile virus there last year. The virus is transmitted to humans by mosquitoes that have previously sucked on infected birds.
According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the infections are “mostly clinically inconspicuous”. Only 20 percent of those affected experience flu-like symptoms such as fever, headache and vomiting. Only about one percent of those infected become seriously ill and may suffer from meningitis (encephalitis or meningoencephalitis).
There is currently no vaccine. What is striking is that, due to climate change, native tropical diseases are increasing in southern and central Europe. In September 2020, according to the RKI, it was proven that at least twelve people in Germany were infected with the West Nile virus within a short period of time. According to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), one person died this year after being infected with West Nile virus in the Mediterranean region. According to the ECDC, several people were also infected in Greece, Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Cyprus.
West Nile fever in Italy: Infections between Santa Margherita, Bibione and Lignano Sabbiadoro
The ECDC recently documented a number of cases of West Nile fever in the northern Adriatic, where the popular beaches in Santa Margherita, Bibione and Lignano Sabbiadoro mainly attract holidaymakers from Austria and Germany. The German Foreign Office recently updated its travel advice for Italy due to an outbreak of dengue fever on Lake Garda – this is also actually a tropical disease. (pm)