Status: 18/09/2023, 17:58 p.m.
By: Patrick Mayer
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Cases of West Nile virus have been reported from various places in Italy. It is not the first tropical disease that has recently plagued the country.
Cagliari – The main holiday season has come to an end, but Italy remains in the headlines in this country as well. An earthquake struck the Tuscany region on Monday (18 September). In addition, a brutal act of violence in Sirmione on Lake Garda shocked.
West Nile fever in Italy: infections in Sardinia and on the Adriatic coast
And now the southern European country is also struggling with some cases of the insidious West Nile fever. These were recorded in Sardinia and on the northern Adriatic around Venice. This was reported by the news portals Südtirol News and heute.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 hospitalized at the San Martino hospital in Oristano, his condition is said to be stable, according to reports.
Popular holiday island in the Mediterranean: The Italian Sardinia. But now cases of West Nile virus have been reported there. (Symbolic photo) © IMAGO / imagebroker
West Nile fever in Italy: cases also detected in Greece and Cyprus
According to Südtirol News, another case had already been detected in Sardinia in August, and there had also been infections with the West Nile virus there in the previous 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 "predominantly 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).
So far, there is no vaccine. What is striking is that climate change is increasing the number of original tropical diseases in southern and central Europe. In September 2020, according to the RKI, at least twelve people had been proven to be infected with the West Nile virus in Germany within a short period of time. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), one person died this year after contracting West Nile virus in the Mediterranean. According to the ECDC, several people were also infected in Greece, Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Cyprus.
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West Nile fever in Italy: infections between Santa Margherita, Bibione and Lignano Sabbiadoro
The ECDC has also 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 attract holidaymakers from Austria and Germany in particular. Recently, the German Foreign Office had already updated its travel advice for Italy due to a dengue fever outbreak on Lake Garda – this is also actually a tropical disease. (pm)
