Robert Koch-Institut (RKI)
FSME: Risikogebiete in Deutschland (Stand: Januar 2021)
[TBE: Risk areas in Germany (Actual state: January 2021)]
Epid. Bull. 2021; 9: 3-20. doi.org/10.25646/8079

In 2020, 704 TBE cases have been reported in Germany, the highest number since reporting began in 2001, and that was 58% more than the year before (2019 with a total number of 445 cases). The yearly number of TBE cases fluctuates heavily in Germany—from 195 in 2012 to 704 in 2020 (median: 301 cases). Prior to 2020, the year with the highest number of reported cases was 2018 (583 cases).

Early in 2021, five additional counties have been assessed risk areas; thus, 169 counties are now official TBE risk areas in Germany. Most cases have been reported in Baden-Wuerttemberg (299 cases, 47%—an increase of 114% compared to 2019), followed by Bavaria (260 cases, 41%) and Hesse (13 cases, 2%). One TBE case was fatal.

The risk to acquire TBE significantly increases in individuals aged at least 40 years and is higher for males compared to females (3.1 vs. 1.9 per 100,000 in 2020). In 2020, some infections may have been caused by consumption of non-pasteurized milk or milk products.

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