[Tick-borne encephalitis in the Netherlands]. / Teken-encefalitis in Nederland.

ABSTRACT

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is endemic in South-Scandinavia, Central Europe and Eastern Europe. In 2016 the first patient was reported with TBE virus infection contracted in the Netherlands, in a forested area between Driebergen and Maarn (near Utrecht). At the time, field research did not identify any TBE-positive ticks at the supposed infection site. In the last two years, two patients have been diagnosed with TBE in the Diakonessenhuis Hospital in Utrecht; one patient was bitten by a tick in the Netherlands. This time round, tests on ticks from a different area near Utrecht (the forests around Zeist) did identify TBE-positive ticks. TBE infection is often asymptomatic. However, in a small proportion of patients, disease can develop and there is currently no curative therapy available. An effective vaccine is available. At the moment no vaccination recommendation is issued in the Netherlands. TBE should be considered in patients presenting with fever after a recent tick bite. When neurological symptoms appear, referral to a neurologist is necessary.