Warmer weather should result in "the explosion of deadly diseases in Europe"



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Experts have warned that an explosion of deadly diseases could affect Europe as the weather heats up on the continent.

Generalized epidemics of malaria, dengue fever, leishmaniasis and Lyme disease may become more common, they said.

    Warmer climate could lead to outbreaks of deadly mosquito, tick and sandfly diseases in Europe and parts of the UK, experts warn

Getty – Contributor

Warmer climate could lead to outbreaks of deadly mosquito, tick and sandfly diseases in Europe and parts of the UK, experts warn
    Climate change could cause more cases of leishmaniasis, a sand fly-transmitted parasitic virus that can cause skin lesions and uncomfortable ulcers
Climate change could cause more cases of leishmaniasis, a sand fly-transmitted parasitic virus that can cause skin lesions and uncomfortable ulcers

And everything depends on climate change, said experts from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.

As the temperature warms, mosquitoes, ticks and sandflies infected with the disease expand their geographical horizons and move further.

This means that pests, usually found in warmer countries, could become a permanent fixture much closer to home.

We must prepare for major epidemics

Professor Jan Semenza said: "Climate change is not the only nor even the main factor in the increase of vector-borne diseases across Europe.

"But it is one of many factors that need to be addressed to limit the importation and spread of these diseases, along with globalization, socio-economic development, health and economic growth. Urbanization and widespread land-use change. "

For his part, Dr. Giovanni Rezza, specialist in infectious diseases at the Istituto Superiore di Sanitá in Rome, Italy, said that major outbreaks of these diseases could occur.

"The harsh reality is that the longer warm seasons will expand the seasonal window for the potential spread of vector-borne diseases and will favor major epidemics," he said.

"We must be prepared to deal with these tropical infections.

"Lessons learned from recent outbreaks of West Nile virus in North America and chikungunya in the Caribbean and Italy underscore the importance of badessing the future risks of vector-borne diseases and disease preparedness. unforeseen for future epidemics. "

The summit of the iceberg

Until now, global warming has allowed mosquitoes, ticks and other disease-causing insects to invade new parts of Europe in the last decade.

As a result, we have seen epidemics of dengue in France and Croatia, malaria in Greece, West Nile fever in southeastern Europe and chikungunya virus in Italy and France.

Worryingly, this could be the tip of the iceberg, said Dr. Rezza.

"The Mediterranean Europe is now a part-time tropical region, where competent vectors like the tiger mosquito are already established," he said.

A warmer and wetter weather could provide the ideal conditions for the Asian tiger mosquito to breed and invade larger parts of Europe, including the south and east of the UK.

It is the virus responsible for the spread of viruses responsible for dengue and chikungunya.

What diseases could invade the UK?

THE FEVER OF DENGUE

It is a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes.

In most cases, the infection is mild and is spread about a week.

But it can be very serious and potentially deadly.

Symptoms include:

  • high temperature
  • Severe headache
  • pain behind the eyes
  • muscle and joint pain
  • to feel and to be sick
  • red rash
  • loss of appetite

MALARIA

Most people have heard of malaria – it's a nasty tropical disease that can be fatal.

A single bite of mozzie is enough for someone to become infected.

Symptoms include:

  • High temperature
  • to be hot and to shudder
  • headache
  • vomiting
  • muscle aches
  • diarrhea

The signs usually appear seven to 18 days after your infection.

But he can stay dormant for up to a year.

leishmaniasis

This is a parasite propagated by sandflies.

There are three types, the most serious ones being fatal.

The common form, CL, causes skin ulcers and harmful lesions, leaving scars for life and severe disability in many cases.

Currently, the virus is more common in countries like the Middle East and Asia, but as the temperature warms, experts warn that sandflies will feel more comfortable on European shores. and British.

BALE ENCEPHALITY

This infection is spread by tick bites and is already common in Asia and parts of Europe.

Responsible ticks are also currently found in Russia, China and Japan.

TBE can be mean, encephalitis is an inflammation of the brain and can strike at any age.

Infections can trigger the disease or the immune system can attack the brain by mistake.

In many cases, a person will not show any symptoms of TBE.

In these people, they tend to appear one to two weeks after being bitten.

The first symptoms include a flu-like syndrome, fever and headaches. It lasts about five days.

Then, a week without symptoms is followed by the second phase of the disease, during which the brain and nerves are affected.

Neck stiffness, headaches, nausea, disturbances of consciousness, earthquakes, personality changes and psychosis are some of the signs.

These diseases are more common in the hottest regions of the world because icy temperatures destroy the eggs of a mosquito.

The researchers warned that we were already witnessing a resurgence of cases of Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis, a deadly disease that causes the brain to swell.

There are an estimated 65,000 cases of Lyme disease each year in Europe.

And over the past 30 years, experts have seen a 400% increase in cases of tick-borne encephalitis.

The teacher. Semenza said that in the future, conditions becoming more favorable for ticks, mosquitoes, public health agencies must be proactive and act quickly to contain the outbreaks.

PREMATURE WORK

Mom lost her baby and her four limbs after opening her cervix too soon

"Given the continuing spread of invasive mosquitoes and other vectors in Europe, we need to anticipate outbreaks and respond quickly," he said.

"Public health agencies need to improve surveillance, for example through early warning systems, to increase awareness among health care workers and the general public of potential risks, and to adopt innovative control strategies such as interventions. community. "

The new research is presented at this year's European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases in Amsterdam.

    Tick-borne encephalitis causing inflammation of the brain and being fatal

Getty – Contributor

Tick-borne encephalitis causing inflammation of the brain and being fatal
A disfiguring tropical disease that had been contained in Syria has no



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