The regional health agency Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and the prefecture of Ain alerted Thursday May 28 on theoutbreak of confirmed tick-borne encephalitis or probable among 26 inhabitants of the department.
The food origin of the transmission of the virus is privileged and a “recall-recall” was carried out on raw milk cheeses of goat and cow of an agricultural exploitation of the basin of Oyonnax. These products would have been consumed by at least 50% of sick people, specify the ARS and the prefecture in a press release. The first cases appeared in mid-April for patients who may have presented ” flu-like symptoms that have subsided“before” progressing to intense headaches and more or less significant vertigo “.
“In order to rule out the idea of infection with the new coronavirus, a majority of patients were the subject of a virological test, associated for some with serological control“, which turned out to be negative, the same source said. However, the diagnosis of tick-borne encephalitis was confirmed for 10 of 26 patients, 24 of whom were hospitalized in May. A person with significant co-morbidities and similar symptoms has died, without possible confirmation of the exact cause of death.
As of May 27, 22 people with favorable development returned to their homes. Two others remain hospitalized but their state of health no longer causes concern. Unlike Lyme disease, which is caused by bacteria, also transmitted by ticks, tick-borne encephalitis is caused by a virus transmitted to humans by the bite of an infested tick, mostly from spring to fall . Very exceptionally, infection can be done by consumption of raw milk or raw milk cheese, from an animal bitten by a tick carrying the virus.
