Navigation auf uzh.ch

Suche

Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Prevention Institute

Publication: “Snail Fever” (Schistosomiasis) cases tracked in Corsica

Recent work by Prof. Dr. Patricia Schlagenhauf and her colleagues at GeoSentinel, the Global Surveillance Network of the International Society of Travel Medicine (ISTM), will appear in the October issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases. The team describes cases of schistosomiasis (also known as Snail Fever), acquired by tourists who bathed in rivers in Corsica, France. Although the intermediate host, a snail, is present in southern Europe, the parasite is usually restricted to tropical areas and until now, schistosomiasis was not considered a possible infectious disease risk for European travellers. The GeoSentinel network identified tourists who acquired schistosomiasis in Corsica and who didn't have any other freshwater exposure. These travellers presented in Germany, Belgium and Canada after to Corsica.
For more, see the e-article which is available before the print edition here.