Southern Europe

• Published in: Infectious Diseases pp. 230 - 237
• Main Authors: Castelli, Francesco, Buelli, Fabio, Francesco Giorgetti, Pier
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: United Kingdom Wiley 2011; John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated; Wiley‐Blackwell
• Subjects: Brucellosis, in every country of the region ‐ Brucella melitensis, Brucella abortus; Chikungunya virus, in Africa and Asia ‐ transmitted by infectious mosquitoes; Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever ‐ and Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) virus, reported in 30 countries; drug resistance, significantly different health expenditures ‐ in different countries; hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) ‐ epidemiological features considered; infectious diarrhea, diarrheal diseases ‐ related to hygienic environmental condition; infectious diseases in travelers ‐ assessing an ill returning traveler; infectious diseases with incubation periods ‐ shorter than 4 weeks; malaria risk of contracting malaria ‐ south‐eastern part of Turkey, and P. vivax; MEDICINE: GENERAL ISSUES; Southern Europe, temperate climate region ‐ bridge between the South and the North
• ISBN: 0470655291; 9780470655290
• DOI: 10.1002/9781119971641.ch18

In this chapter, the following countries will be considered as part of Southern Europe (http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/index.html) as they share common characteristics from the epidemiological standpoint: countries of the Iberian and Italian peninsulas, most of the Balkan countries, Cyprus, Malta, and Turkey. The total population of the region is 220 million of inhabitants and the average number of tourists per year is 180 millions. Southern Europe is a temperate climate region acting as a bridge between the South and the North, located at the crossroad of migration. Apart from pandemic infections, such as infections with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), Southern Europe offers peculiar epidemiological features that may be considered. This is mainly due to the presence of specific possible vectors of viral (Tuscany virus, etc.) and protozoan (Leishmania, potentially Plasmodium vivax malaria) infections. These features make Southern Europe at risk for vector‐borne emerging diseases, such as Chikungunya, dengue, and West Nile, as recently demonstrated although sporadically. Due to its warm climate and long seashores, Southern Europe may also be potentially considered a suitable place for the transmission of fecal‐oral pathogens (hepatitis A, typhoid fever, traveler's diarrhea, etc.) although the dramatic improvement of hygienic conditions during the last decades has substantially decreased this risk. The high antibiotic pressure exerted on in the past decades on many bacterial species has given rise to the worrying phenomenon of bacterial drug resistance in the region, particularly in those countries with higher living standards. Unfortunately epidemiological data on many infectious diseases are limited (Bartonella, Borrelia), with uncertain prevalence and incidence values.