Chapter 12c: Risk map for TBEV

Gerhard Dobler, Wilhelm Erber, Michael Bröker, Lidia Chitimia-Dobler and Heinz-Josef Schmitt
In the map below, the areas highlighted in orange indicate TBEV endemic regions as documented either by 1) TBEV detection in ticks or other animals; or 2) detection of specific TBEV antibodies in reservoir animals or human sera; or 3) microbiologically confirmed locally acquired TBE cases in humans who contracted the disease in the respective region. This map does not reflect the incidence of the disease or the prevalence of the virus in a given area.

Click on the map to zoom:


*This map may be different from “official” TBE risk maps from local authorities as shown in chapter 12b for individual countries. Differences between the map above and country maps are explained by the fact that Public Health officials try to quantify the risk for TBE and thus indicate only those areas as “TBE risk areas” where a certain incidence threshold of TBE case numbers or TBE incidence is reached. This approach, however, does neither take into account the (in-) completeness of testing of all encephalitis cases for TBE as well as vaccine uptake nor the existence of TBEV in regions with low risk of exposition to humans (i.e. high TBE risk areas, however only rarely visited by humans). The goal of the map is to give a more real impression of the distribution of the TBEV, according to available virological/serological data – since all other data are biased by incomplete surveillance. Moreover, the map presented here may not entirely be complete, and very likely TBEV infections and thus TBE may occur in additional (“new”) areas.

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