Tuberculosis incidence in foreign-born people residing in European countries in 2020.

BackgroundEuropean-specific policies for tuberculosis (TB) elimination require identification of key populations that benefit from TB screening.AimWe aimed to identify groups of foreign-born individuals residing in European countries that benefit most from targeted TB prevention screening.MethodsThe Tuberculosis Network European Trials group collected, by cross-sectional survey, numbers of foreign-born TB patients residing in European Union (EU) countries, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom (UK) in 2020 from the 10 highest ranked countries of origin in terms of TB cases in each country of residence. Tuberculosis incidence rates (IRs) in countries of residence were compared with countries of origin.ResultsData on 9,116 foreign-born TB patients in 30 countries of residence were collected. Main countries of origin were Eritrea, India, Pakistan, Morocco, Romania and Somalia. Tuberculosis IRs were highest in patients of Eritrean and Somali origin in Greece and Malta (both > 1,000/100,000) and lowest among Ukrainian patients in Poland (3.6/100,000). They were mainly lower in countries of residence than countries of origin. However, IRs among Eritreans and Somalis in Greece and Malta were five times higher than in Eritrea and Somalia. Similarly, IRs among Eritreans in Germany, the Netherlands and the UK were four times higher than in Eritrea.ConclusionsCountry of origin TB IR is an insufficient indicator when targeting foreign-born populations for active case finding or TB prevention policies in the countries covered here. Elimination strategies should be informed by regularly collected country-specific data to address rapidly changing epidemiology and associated risks.

Malaria surveillance system and Hospital Discharge Records: Assessing differences in Italy, 2011-2017 database analysis.

BACKGROUND: In Italy, surveillance through mandatory notification of cases to the National Surveillance System (NSS) has shown evidence of underreporting over the years. To evaluate the overall quality of malaria dataset, Hospital Discharge Records (HDRs) were analyzed as a second data source. METHODS: Malaria cases by NSS and by HRDs were compared and analyzed from 2011-through 2017. The impact of cases was estimated by annual rates per 100,000 residents. RESULTS: Cases reported to NSS and to HDRs were 5,149 and 6,446, respectively. The annual rate recorded by NSS increased from 1.2 per 100,000 in 2011 to 1.4 per 100,000 in 2017, a similar trend was shown by HDRs, from 1.4 per 100,000 in 2011 to 1.6 per 100,000 in 2017. Every year, the number of NSS cases was lower than HDRs cases suggesting moderate underreporting of the mandatory notification. In both data sources adult males aged 25 to 44, and non-Italian travellers visiting friends and relatives were the most affected groups; Plasmodium falciparum was the prevalent agent identified, being the imported cases originated mainly from sub-Saharan Africa. As places of diagnosis and care, both data sources indicated hospitals located in Northern Italy in over 70% of cases. CONCLUSIONS: Although the comparison of malaria cases highlighted some underreporting by NSS, a fair agreement between the two institutional information systems was observed. The use of both data sources improves the performance of malaria surveillance in Italy, essentially for early warning systems in case of locally-acquired events and primary prevention in international travellers.

Exploring the evidence for the effectiveness of health interventions for COVID-19 targeting migrants: a systematic review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Owing to their inherent vulnerabilities, the burden of COVID-19 and particularly of its control measures on migrants has been magnified. A thorough assessment of the value of the interventions for COVID-19 tailored to migrants is essential for improving their health outcomes as well as promoting an effective control of the pandemic. In this study, based on evidence from primary biomedical research, we aimed to systematically identify health interventions for COVID-19 targeting migrants and to assess and compare their effectiveness. The review will be conducted within a programme aimed at defining and implementing interventions to control the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, funded by the Italian Ministry of Health and conducted by a consortium of Italian regional health authorities. METHODS AND ANALYSES: Data sources will include the bibliographic databases MEDLINE, Embase, LOVE Platform COVID-19 Evidence, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Eligible studies must evaluate health interventions for COVID-19 in migrants. Two independent reviewers will screen articles for inclusion using predefined eligibility criteria, extract data of retained articles and assess methodological quality by applying the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. Disagreements will be resolved through consensus or arbitrated by a third reviewer if necessary. In synthesising the evidence, we will structure results by interventions, outcomes and quality. Where studies are sufficiently homogenous, trial data will be pooled and meta-analyses will be performed. Data will be reported according to methodological guidelines for systematic review provided by the Cochrane Collaboration and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This is a review of existing literature, and ethics approval is not required. We will submit results for peer-review publication and present at relevant conferences. The review findings will be included in future efforts to develop evidence-informed recommendations, policies or programmatic actions at the national and regional levels and address future high-quality research in public health.

Hepatitis E Outbreak in the Central Part of Italy Sustained by Multiple HEV Genotype 3 Strains, June-December 2019.

In European countries, autochthonous acute hepatitis E cases are caused by Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) genotype 3 and are usually observed as sporadic cases. In mid/late September 2019, a hepatitis E outbreak caused by HEV genotype 3 was recognized by detection of identical/highly similar HEV sequences in some hepatitis E cases from two Italian regions, Abruzzo and Lazio, with most cases from this latter region showing a link with Abruzzo. Overall, 47 cases of HEV infection were finally observed with onsets from 8 June 2019 to 6 December 2019; they represent a marked increase as compared with just a few cases in the same period of time in the past years and in the same areas. HEV sequencing was successful in 35 cases. The phylogenetic analysis of the viral sequences showed 30 of them grouped in three distinct molecular clusters, termed A, B, and C: strains in cluster A and B were of subtype 3e and strains in cluster C were of subtype 3f. No strains detected in Abruzzo in the past years clustered with the strains involved in the present outbreak. The outbreak curve showed partially overlapped temporal distribution of the three clusters. Analysis of collected epidemiological data identified pork products as the most likely source of the outbreak. Overall, the findings suggest that the outbreak might have been caused by newly and almost simultaneously introduced strains not previously circulating in this area, which are possibly harbored by pork products or live animals imported from outside Abruzzo. This possibility deserves further studies in this area in order to monitor the circulation of HEV in human cases as well as in pigs and wild boars.

The challenging task to select Salmonella target serovars in poultry: the Italian point of view.

According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) annual report, human salmonellosis is mostly related to consumption of contaminated poultry products. Since 2003 in Europe, the Salmonella serovars considered relevant for human health and subject to control in breeding hens of Gallus gallus are: S. Enteritidis, S. Typhimurium (including the monophasic variant), S. Infantis, S. Hadar and S. Virchow. Herein, we investigated the Italian epidemiological situation from 2016 to 2018, comparing Salmonella serovar distributions in humans and poultry, in order to identify the target Salmonella serovars that, if controlled, would potentially have the largest public health impact in Italy. The results showed that control of S. Virchow and S. Hadar does no longer seem to be a priority in Italy and that S. Napoli and S. Derby, which are not included in the group of EU target serovars, are among the most frequent serovars isolated from humans in Italy. While S. Derby has its main reservoir in pigs, S. Napoli does not have a specific reservoir. However, because this serovar is frequently isolated from breeding poultry flocks and is characterised by causing severe human illness, it is a potential target Salmonella serovar in breeding hens of Gallus gallus in Italy.

Hepatitis E Virus Occurrence in Pigs Slaughtered in Italy.

In Europe, foodborne transmission has been clearly associated to sporadic cases and small clusters of hepatitis E in humans linked to the consumption of contaminated pig liver sausages, raw venison, or undercooked wild boar meat. In Europe, zoonotic HEV-genotype 3 strains are widespread in pig farms but little information is available on the prevalence of HEV positive pigs at slaughterhouse. In the present study, the prevalence of HEV-RNA positive pigs was assessed on 585 animals from 4 abattoirs located across Italy. Twenty-one pigs (3.6%) tested positive for HEV in either feces or liver by real-time RT-PCR. In these 21 pigs, eight diaphragm muscles resulted positive for HEV-RNA. Among animals collected in one abattoir, 4 out of 91 plasma tested positive for HEV-RNA. ELISA tests for the detection of total antibodies against HEV showed a high seroprevalence (76.8%), confirming the frequent exposure of pigs to the virus. The phylogenetic analyses conducted on sequences of both ORF1 and ORF2 fragments, shows the circulation of HEV-3c and of a novel unclassified subtype. This study provides information on HEV occurrence in pigs at the slaughterhouse, confirming that muscles are rarely contaminated by HEV-RNA compared to liver, which is the most frequently positive for HEV.

Non-imported malaria in Italy: paradigmatic approaches and public health implications following an unusual cluster of cases in 2017.

BACKGROUND: The European region achieved interruption of malaria transmission during the 1970s. Since then, malaria control programs were replaced by surveillance systems in order to prevent possible re-emergence of this disease. Sporadic cases of non-imported malaria were recorded in several European countries in the past decade and locally transmitted outbreaks of Plasmodium vivax, most probably supported by Anopheles sacharovi, have been repeatedly reported from Greece since 2009. The possibility of locally-transmitted malaria has been extensively studied in Italy where the former malaria vector An. labranchiae survived the control campaign which led to malaria elimination. In this study, we present paradigmatic cases that occurred during a 2017 unusual cluster, which caused strong concern in public opinion and were carefully investigated after the implementation of the updated malaria surveillance system. METHODS: For suspected locally-transmitted malaria cases, alerts to Ministry of Health (MoH) and the National Institute of Health (ISS) were mandated by the Local Health Services (LHS). Epidemiological investigations on the transmission modes and the identification of possible infection's source were carried out by LHS, MoH and ISS. Entomological investigations were implemented locally for all suspected locally-transmitted cases that occurred in periods suitable to anopheline activity. Molecular diagnosis by nested-PCR for the five human Plasmodium species was performed to support microscopic diagnosis. In addition, genotyping of P. falciparum isolate was carried out to investigate putative sources of infection and transmission modalities. RESULTS: In 2017, a cluster of seven non-imported cases was recorded from August through October. Among them, P. ovale curtisi was responsible of one case whereas six cases were caused by P. falciparum. Two cases were proved to be nosocomial while the other five were recorded as cryptic at the end of epidemiological investigations. CONCLUSIONS: The epidemiological evidence shows that the locally acquired events are sporadic, often remain unresolved and classified as cryptic ones despite investigative efforts. The "cluster" of seven non-imported cases that occurred in 2017 in different regions of Italy therefore represents a conscious alert that should lead us to maintain a constant level of surveillance in a former malaria endemic country.

Nine-Year Nationwide Environmental Surveillance of Hepatitis E Virus in Urban Wastewaters in Italy (2011-2019).

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging causative agent of acute hepatitis worldwide. To provide insights into the epidemiology of HEV in Italy, a large-scale investigation was conducted into urban sewage over nine years (2011-2019), collecting 1374 sewage samples from 48 wastewater treatment plants located in all the 20 regions of Italy. Broadly reactive primers targeting the ORF1 and ORF2 regions were used for the detection and typing of HEV, followed by Sanger and next generation sequencing (NGS). Real-time RT-qPCR was also used to attempt quantification of positive samples. HEV RNA detection occurred in 74 urban sewage samples (5.4%), with a statistically significant higher frequency (7.1%) in central Italy. Fifty-six samples were characterized as G3 strains and 18 as G1. While the detection of G3 strains occurred in all the surveillance period, G1 strains were mainly detected in 2011-2012, and never in 2017-2019. Typing was achieved in 2 samples (3f subtype). Viral concentrations in quantifiable samples ranged from 1.2 × 103 g.c./L to 2.8 × 104 g.c./L. Our results suggest the considerable circulation of the virus in the Italian population, despite a relatively small number of notified cases, a higher occurrence in central Italy, and a noteworthy predominance of G3 strains.

High HIV-1 diversity in immigrants resident in Italy (2008-2017).

The proportion of new diagnoses of HIV infection in immigrants residing in Italy raised from 11% in 1992 to 29.7% in 2018. To investigate the HIV clades circulating in this community a retrospective study was performed in 557 HIV-infected immigrants living in 12 Italian cities. Immigrants originated from East-Europe and Central-Asia (11.7%), North Africa and Middle East (7.3%), South and South-East Asia (7.2%), Latin America and the Caribbean (14.4%), and sub-Saharan Africa (59.4%). More than 87% of immigrants were on antiretroviral therapy (ART), although 26.6% of them were viremic. A 22.0% of immigrants had hepatitis (HBV and/or HCV) and/or tuberculosis. HIV phylogenetic analysis on sequences from 192 immigrants showed the presence of clades B (23.4%), G (16.1%), C (10.4%), A1 (9.4%), F1 (5.2%), D (1.6%) and Circulating Recombinant Forms (CRFs) (33.9%). CRF02_AG represented 72.3% of the total CRFs. Clusters between immigrants and Italian natives were also present. Drug resistance mutations to NRTI, NNRTI, and PI drug classes occurred in 29.1% of ART-treated and in 12.9% of ART-naïve individuals. These data highlight the need for tailored public health interventions in immigrants to avoid spreading in Italy of HIV genetic forms and ART-resistant variants, as well as HIV co-morbidities.

Correlates of infection and molecular characterization of blood-borne HIV, HCV, and HBV infections in HIV-1 infected inmates in Italy: An observational cross-sectional study.

Coinfection of blood-borne hepatitis B and hepatitis C viruses (HBV and HCV, respectively) in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-positive individuals frequently occurs in inmate population and peculiar viral strains and patterns of virological markers may be observed.Plasma from 69 HIV-1-positive inmates was obtained from 7 clinical centers connected with correctional centers in different towns in Italy. HIV, HBV, and HCV markers were tested by commercial assays. Virus genotyping was carried out by sequencing the protease and reverse transcriptase-encoding region (PR-RT region) for HIV and a region encompassing the NS5B gene for HCV and subsequent phylogenetic analysis.Twelve over 14 HIV-subtyped inmates were infected with HIV-1 subtype B strains. The 2 non-B strains belonged to subtype G and CRF02_AG, in an Italian and a Gambian patient, respectively. Variants carrying the K103N and Y181C resistance mutations to non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) were found in 2 out of 9 patients naive for combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) (22.2%). Most HIV-positive patients (92.8%) showed evidence of past or present HBV and/or HCV infection. Prevalence of HBV and HCV was 81.2% for both viruses, whereas prevalence of HBV/HCV coinfection was 69.6%. A significantly higher presence of HCV infection was found in Italians [odds ratio (OR) 11.0; interval 1.7-80.9] and in drug users (OR 27.8; interval 4.9-186.0). HCV subtypes were determined in 42 HCV or HBV/HCV-coinfected individuals. HCV subtypes 1a, 3a, 4d, and 1b were found in 42.9%, 40.5%, 14.3%, and 2.4% of inmates, respectively. Low titers of HBV DNA in HBV DNA positive subjects precluded HBV subtyping.The high prevalence of HBV and HCV coinfections in HIV-infected inmates, as well as the heterogeneity of HIV and HCV subtypes suggest the need to adopt systematic controls in prisons to monitor both the burden and the genetic forms of blood-borne viral infections, in order to apply targeted therapeutic interventions.

Building up a collaborative network for the surveillance of HIV genetic diversity in Italy. A pilot study.

INTRODUCTION: Prevalence of infection with HIV-1 non-B subtypes in Italy has been reported to raise, due to increased migration flows and travels. HIV-1 variants show different biological and immunological properties that impact on disease progression rate, response to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and sensitivity of diagnostic tests with important implications for public health. Therefore, a constant surveillance of the dynamics of HIV variants in Italy should be a high public health priority. Organization of surveillance studies requires building up a platform constituted of a network of clinical centers, laboratories and institutional agencies, able to properly collect samples for the investigation of HIV subtypes heterogeneity and to provide a database with reliable demographic, clinical, immunological and virological data. AIM: We here report our experience in building up such a platform, co-ordinated by the National AIDS Center of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità, taking advantage of a pilot study aimed at evaluating HIV subtypes diversity in populations of HIV-infected migrant people in Italy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four hundred and thirty four HIV-infected migrants were enrolled in 9 Italian clinical centers located throughout the Italian territory. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for sample collection were provided by the National AIDS Center to each clinical center. In addition, clinical centers were required to fill up a case report form (crf) for each patient, which included demographic, clinical, immunological and virological information. RESULTS: All centers properly collected and stored samples from each enrolled individual. Overall, the required information was correctly provided for more than 90% of the patients. However, some fields of the crf, particularly those including information on the last HIV-negative antibody test and presence of co-infections, were properly filled up in less than 80% of the enrolled migrants. Centers from Northern and Central Italy showed a better tendency to report correct information in the crf than centers from the South. These results provide evidence that procedures for establishing a platform for the surveillance of HIV subtype heterogeneity are affordable by all the components of the network and lay the ground for the organization of a broader HIV subtypes surveillance in Italy.

Incidence of malaria and risk factors in Italian travelers to malaria endemic countries.

BACKGROUND: Imported malaria has been an increasing problem in Italy in the last three decades of the 1900s, representing the main risk for travelers visiting tropical and sub-tropical countries where malaria is endemic. Even though the total number of imported cases has been declining since 2000, malaria still represents the most frequent notifiable imported disease in Italy. The present study analyzes all the malaria cases reported in Italy in 2000-2006 in order to assess the trend of incidence over the time and reviewing the risk factors for travelers visiting malaria endemic countries. METHODS: All 2000-2006 case report forms were analyzed. The incidence of malaria in Italian travelers was calculated by continent and by countries most visited, using data provided by the Ministry of Transportation. RESULTS: Out of the 5219 malaria cases reported and confirmed in the study period five were autochthonous and 5214 imported, 1518 of which occurred in Italian citizen and 3696 in foreigners. Between 2000 and 2006 imported malaria cases fell from 977 to 630 respectively, with a total reduction of about 36%. Most of the cases were contracted in Africa (93%) and Plasmodium falciparum was the etiological agent in 83% of the cases, with an annual average fatality rate of about 0.5%. The average of the crude incidence rate (CIR) among Italians was calculated by continent for both global cases (gCIR) and for P. falciparum cases (pfCIR) resulting of 1.2/1000 and 0.9 for Africa, 0.08/1000 and 0.02 for Asia, 0.03/1000 and 0.003 for Central and South America, respectively. The gCIR by continent slightly but decreased constantly over the study period. DISCUSSION: The different factors which may influence the risk of contracting malaria for travelers visiting endemic countries and the strategy to reduce completely the number of fatal cases were considered and discussed.

Aspects of the Italian legislation related to HIV testing.

Italy has adhered to international declarations regarding the prevention, care, and treatment of HIV/AIDS and has adopted the fundamental interventions for surveillance and control; access to testing is defined by Law 135 of 5 June 1990. At the time, the Ministry of Health issued decrees to define national epidemiological surveillance systems for new HIV infections. The decree provides indications on the data to be collected, data flow, the modes of data transmission respecting security measures and some recommendations regarding access to HIV testing. It is thus necessary to develop national recommendations on appropriate methods for considering the diverse phases of access to testing in relation to the level of awareness of the minor, the outcome and divulging of the test.

The risk of malaria in travelers to India.

BACKGROUND: Several countries have reported a decline in malaria cases imported by travelers returning from India. METHODS: We collected data on imported malaria for the period 1992 to 2005 from nine countries. Traveler statistics denominator data were obtained from the Indian Ministry of Tourism. RESULTS: The malaria case numbers declined from 93 cases per 100,000 travelers in 1992 to 19 cases per 100,000 travelers in 2005. The proportion of Plasmodium falciparum decreased steadily throughout the years. The proportion of Plasmodium vivax accounts for more than 80% of all cases of malaria in travelers to India. Deaths due to malaria were rare; only the UK and the United States reported deaths, a total of 16, between 1992 and 2005. The high-risk areas for malaria in India can be clearly identified using endemic malaria data. High-risk states are Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Goa (mainly P vivax), and the states east of Bangladesh. CONCLUSIONS: The decreasing incidence of malaria in travelers to India and the high proportion of P vivax support the current change in guidelines in some European countries advocating the use of the standby emergency self-treatment strategy or bite precautions plus awareness of risk instead of chemoprophylaxis. Otherwise in high-risk states, chemoprophylaxis should still be considered particularly in high-transmission seasons.

Imported malaria in children in industrialized countries, 1992-2002.

Children account for an appreciable proportion of total imported malaria cases, yet few studies have quantified these cases, identified trends, or suggested evidence-based prevention strategies for this group of travelers. We therefore sought to identify numbers of cases and deaths, Plasmodium species, place of malaria acquisition, preventive measures used, and national origin of malaria in children. We analyzed retrospective data from Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States and data provided by the United Nations World Tourism Organization. During 1992-2002, >17,000 cases of imported malaria in children were reported in 11 countries where malaria is not endemic; most (>70%) had been acquired in Africa. Returning to country of origin to visit friends and relatives was a risk factor. Malaria prevention for children should be a responsibility of healthcare providers and should be subsidized for low-income travelers to high-risk areas.