It is a disease that has been spreading more and more for two years. Friday July 7, Public Health France (SPF) published its first report on tick-borne encephalitis in France for the period from May 2021 to May 2023. According to SPF, 71 cases have been recorded since May 2021 (30 in 2021, 36 in 2022 and 5 in 2023). It is therefore still not very widespread in France. “This first assessment published today shows that the infections acquired on the territory are more numerous than those acquired during travel”, notes SPF (86% against 14%).
According to the Pasteur Institute, it is a “viral” disease transmitted mainly “by the bite of ticks”. SPF also indicates that this virus mainly spreads from “spring to autumn”, which corresponds to the “period of tick activity”. It is also possible to be contaminated by consuming raw milk or cheese, mainly from sheep, goats or cows, although this remains rarer, according to the Pasteur Institute.
During a press conference reported by AFP, the epidemiologist of SPF Alexandra Mailles assured that this disease had a “very low lethality”, but that it caused in symptomatic cases “significant sequelae following the damage to the central nervous system”. Of the 71 cases identified, “94% of cases were hospitalized”, but “no death occurred at the time”, further specifies Public Health France. Most of those affected are men with a median age of 48 years. Four cases were under sixteen years old and fifteen others were over 65 years old. Age is an increased severity factor.
” READ ALSO – Wasps, ticks, vipers, jellyfish… Good reflexes (and gestures to avoid) for the holidays
In its bulletin, SPF dissociates “three types of this virus: European, Far Eastern and Siberian”. The European is the only one present in France and “is responsible for less serious illnesses than the other two”. According to the Institut Pasteur, its evolution is “rather favorable”. Haute-Savoie is the department where the most cases have been reported in the last two years in the country, “while the recognition of the virus is much more recent there than in Alsace”, continues Public Health France. “We now have the conditions, in a certain number of regions, for transmissions”, however underlined Alexandra Mailles.
There is currently no “specific treatment”, details the Pasteur Institute. The latter advises “to avoid areas where ticks are abundant from spring to autumn”, to “cover up if you have to enter these areas”, to “use repellent products on the skin and insecticides on the clothing”, and to “examine oneself carefully when returning from work or from a walk and extract the ticks attached to the skin” to protect oneself from the disease. Vaccination is recommended for travelers to areas of frequent infection.
” READ ALSO – Tick bite: what is the risk of developing Lyme disease?
The European countries most affected by tick-borne encephalitis are Germany, the Czech Republic and the Baltic countries. An extension of the disease to Northern and Eastern Europe has been observed in particular. “With climate change, certain countries or regions are becoming more favorable to ticks”, also continued Alexandra Mailles. In the world, there are 5,000 and 13,000 cases of tick-borne encephalitis are recorded each year in the world.
