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Tick-borne encephalitis – France (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes) raw cheese suspected source
May 31, 2020
The main route of TBE infection is by tick bites, but TBE can also be acquired by consumption of unpasteurized milk and milk products.
In Europe, most alimentary TBE infections are reported from eastern Europe and the Baltic states, but also from Slovakia (see Snapshot week 33/2018). In the Newsletter of April 2018, a TBE outbreak in Germany caused by unpasteurized goat milk and cheese has been discussed.
The Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes regional agency and the Ain prefecture alerted on May 28, 2020 an outbreak confirmed or probable to TBE virus in 26 inhabitants of the department.
The first cases appeared on mid-April with flu-like symptoms: 24 of 26 patients were hospitalized and in 10 individuals TBE was diagnostically confirmed. One patient with underlying diseases died. On May 29, 2020 two patients were still hospitalized.
The focus of infection is on consumption of raw unpasteurized milk cheese of goat and cow origin. So far, no information is available about goats, cows and ticks infected with TBE virus from that region.
It should be noted that new TBE foci have recently been identified in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region (Snapshot week 38/2019).
Also available is a report by France 3 – Info Locale (France Televisions) with a video about this case and an interview with the goat farmer and a patient.
A more detailed report about this alimentary outbreak can be found in the
Bulletin épidémiologique hebdomadaire, 19 juin 2020, n°16.
santepubliquefrance.fr.