First human case of Shamonda virus in France is fatal
The virus, which also circulates among livestock in the Netherlands, has infected a person for the first time. French authorities say there is no health risk for the general population.
A person in France has been infected with the Shamonda virus and has died, it was announced on Thursday. It is the first time the virus has been found in a human. The patient had a severely weakened immune system.
The virus circulates among livestock such as cows and horses, including in the Netherlands. French authorities say that, on current knowledge, there is no health risk for the general population.
A risk analysis by the RIVM, the Dutch public health institute, this summer found that the risk to people was not zero but very small.
The RIVM also started a study this summer in the Netherlands among high-risk groups, such as vets and livestock farmers and their families. It runs the study together with the GGD and animal health service Royal GD.
The virus is now circulating in 15 countries.
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RIVM (Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu)
The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, the government institute that monitors infectious diseases, runs the national vaccination programmes and measures air quality and nitrogen deposition.
GGD (Gemeentelijke Gezondheidsdienst)
The GGD is the municipal public health service in the Netherlands. Each regional GGD covers a group of municipalities and carries out public health tasks such as infectious disease control, vaccination programmes, and youth health care. GGDs also work with national bodies such as the RIVM on health monitoring and studies, and they often run these projects together with other partners.