LET'S ENCOURAGE VACCINATION AGAINST MUNICIPAL MENINGOECEPHALITIS (CME) - SLOVENIA IS AMONG THE MOST ENDANGERED AREAS IN EUROPE
Tick-borne meningoencephalitis is a viral disease of the central nervous system that is transmitted by the bite of an infected tick and the consumption of unpasteurized milk or milk products containing the virus. It threatens people who, during the period of tick activity, stay in natural foci of the disease (in the forest undergrowth, in the bushes of moist mixed forests, in the grass, in the park, on the playground, in the garden).
Ticks hibernate in leaves, in the bark of tree trunks and surface soil layers, and become active as soon as the soil temperature rises. Their activity is a reflection of climatic fluctuations - a mild winter and a wet spring accelerate the activity of ticks. The risk of tick infection sometimes lasts from February to November. It appears focally. There can be many ticks up to an altitude of 600 m, and their number decreases with altitude.
Slovenia is one of the most threatened areas in Europe. In the last decade, an average of 250 people a year fell ill with CME in Slovenia. The highest rate of morbidity is in Gorenjska, Carinthia and Notranjska.
People of all age groups are at risk of infection. In children and adolescents, the disease usually has a milder course than in adults. In elderly patients (especially over 60 years of age), CME has a more severe course, with more pronounced involvement of the central nervous system, impaired consciousness and paralysis, which in rare cases are permanent. Mortality in patients with CME is 0.5% to 2%.
From the results of the surveys that we have conducted in previous years among those suffering from CME, it was established that 72% of those affected live in the area where they were infected with the CME virus. Most people probably got infected while staying in the forest for recreation, harvesting forest fruits or farming. 74% of people noticed a tick being sucked in, while the rest do not remember a tick bite or they didn't notice him.
The high incidence of the disease in Slovenia is a reflection of the low vaccination rate against KME. The proportion of people vaccinated against this serious disease in Slovenia is still very low. Only around 12% of the population received at least one dose (survey from 2007), while 7.3% of the population are vaccinated regularly (estimate for 2013 based on data from reports on the implementation of vaccination). The proportion of people vaccinated in Slovenia is very low. Based on the reports on the implementation of vaccination, we estimated that only 7.5% of the population was vaccinated regularly in 2014. According to the survey on a representative sample of the population of Slovenia from 2014 (EHIS), it is estimated that 15.8% of the population aged 15 years or older have ever (at least once) been vaccinated against KME.
Figure 11: Number of registered KME, Slovenia, 1999 – 2018.
The disease can leave permanent consequences (headache, reduced concentration, impairment of motor skills, paresis, paralysis), but it can also be fatal. The drug is not yet available. Not every tick is 2012 infected, but you still need to protect yourself from them. The most effective and the only safe protection is vaccination!
Although vaccination in Slovenia is mandatory only for persons who are exposed to the infection during work and education (pupils, students), it is recommended for everyone. We vaccinate from one year of age onwards.
An example of good practice
In Austria, which has a similar spread of the causative agent, with a very high-profile promotion of vaccination, they managed to increase the proportion of vaccinated people from 6% in 1980 to more than 80% in recent years (88% of the entire population received at least one dose of the vaccine, 58% regularly vaccinations), while at the same time the number of people who got sick dropped sharply.
So, let's get vaccinated!
- at your personal doctor;
- in clinics at regional units of the National Institute of Public Health. http://www.nijz.si/sl/ambulante
More information at: http://www.nijz.si/sl/pravocasno-se-zascitimo-pred-klopi-saj-lahko-prenasajo-bolezni-2
Prepared by: Mateja Blaško Markič, B.Sc. a dream. Eng., Assoc. prof. Maja Sočan, Ph.D. med., spec. internist, specialist of public health.
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