Cases of dengue fever and other mosquito-related illnesses are on the rise in Europe as climate change creates more favorable conditions for the spread of invasive mosquitoes, the EU health agency warned this week.
In 2023, 130 cases of autochthonous dengue fever were recorded in the European Union plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway (EEA zone), compared to 71 in 2022.
This is a “significant increase” compared to 2010-21, a period during which 73 cases were recorded, indicates the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) in a press release.
The number of imported cases has also soared, to 1,572 in 2022 and 4,900 in 2023, its highest level since the start of European surveillance in 2008.
“Europe is already seeing that climate change is creating more favorable conditions for invasive mosquitoes to spread to previously untouched areas and for more people to be infected with diseases such as dengue” said Andrea Ammon, director of ECDC.
Regarding West Nile virus, 713 indigenous cases were recorded in 123 regions of nine EU countries in 2023, with 67 deaths.
While this is a decline compared to the 1,133 cases in 2022, the number of affected regions is at its highest since 2018.
The mosquito responsible for the spread of West Nile virus, Culex pipiens, is native to Europe and present throughout the EU/EEA, according to the ECDC.
The Aedes albopictus mosquito (tiger mosquito), known to transmit dengue, chikungunya and Zika viruses,spreading further north, east and west of Europe, and now has self-sustaining populations in 13 EU/EEA countries“, indicated the ECDC.
The Aedes aegypti species, responsible for the spread of yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya and Zika, has recently become established in Cyprus and several peripheral regions of the EU, such as Madeira and the French islands of Caribbean.
“Climate change is widely anticipated to have a significant impact on the spread of mosquito-borne diseases in Europe, for example by creating favorable environmental conditions for the establishment and growth of mosquito populations“, underlines the ECDC.
The agency says coordinated control measures, such as bed nets, insecticides and household residual insecticide spraying, are crucial to containing these diseases.
Removing stagnant water from balconies and gardens and protecting yourself are also essential measures, adds the ECDC.
