There were 71 cases of the disease - which generally causes fever and muscle pain but can be more severe and even sometimes fatal - last year, mainly in France. Between 2010 and 2021, there were 74 cases.
The health agency warned at a press conference today there is an increasing risk of a number of mosquito-borne diseases in the European region, including dengue, zika, chikungunya and West Nile virus, linked to the changing climate and the spread of mosquitoes carrying the viruses.
"If this continues, we can expect to see more cases and possibly deaths from diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and West Nile fever," said Andrea Ammon, ECDC director.
"Efforts need to focus on ways to control mosquito populations, enhancing surveillance and enforcing personal protective measures."
The agency said that the mosquito species Aedes albopictus, which spreads chikungunya and dengue, was moving further north and west in Europe. Aedes aegypti, which spreads diseases including dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya, became established in Cyprus last year and could make further inroads, it said.
While the rates of some mosquito-borne diseases in Europe have not risen dramatically in recent years or even fallen slightly, such as malaria and zika, others have seen a "striking" rise, particularly dengue, the ECDC said. Dengue rates are rising globally. This year, the disease was found in the Sudanese capital for the first time, and Peru recently declared a state of emergency in most regions due to a surge in cases.
The World Health Organization warned on Wednesday about a potential further rise in infections due to the El Nino weather event impacting weather patterns worldwide.
Mallorca app
“If you get bitten, notify!”is the slogan chosen by the Ministry of Health to launch the new“Mosquito Alert” project in Mallorca, an application that allows people to provide information on the presence and activity of these insects to prevent the transmission of diseases.
In a statement, the Ministry of Health explains that this tool, developed through the Centre for the Coordination of Alerts and Health Emergencies (CCAES), has opted for citizen science and allows anyone to provide information on the presence and activity of invasive species, such as the tiger mosquito or the Japanese mosquito.
The aim of the platform is to study the expansion of the tiger mosquito beyond the known limit in Spain, to generate the first bite map to identify where and when there is greater interaction between people and mosquitoes, to expand knowledge about the distribution of the Japanese mosquito and to detect the possible arrival of the yellow fever mosquito.
“Mosquito Alert” is a project of the Blanes Centre for Advanced Studies of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), the Pompeu Fabra University (UPF), the Centre for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF) and the Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA).
The CSIC researcher, Frederic Bartumeus, said that the incorporation of “citizen science” for this activity is a pioneering action at European level, and allows the collection of massive data and a constant dialogue with the general public.
In addition, Fernando Simón, the director of the CCAES, says that we must take advantage of the information that we constantly generate on mobile phones for vector control and many other public health issues.
With the information provided by the public, after validation and classification by experts from the National Network of Digital Entomology (ReNED), dynamic risk maps are produced to enable a faster and more efficient response to mosquito-related health problems.
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