Epidemiology of Lyme borreliosis using two surveillance systems: the national Sentinelles GP network and the national hospital discharge database, France, 2005–2016

Background: Lyme borreliosis (LB) is the most common vector-borne disease in France. Since 2009, surveillance of LB has been conducted by a sentinel network of general practitioners (GPs). This system, in conjunction with the national hospitalization database, was used to estimate the incidence and describe the characteristics of LB in France. Objective: To describe the estimated incidence and trends in GP consultations and hospital admissions for LB in France and to identify risk groups and high-incidence regions. Results: From 2011 to 2016, the mean annual incidence rate of LB cases was 53 per 100,000 inhabitants (95% CI: 41–65), ranging from 41 in 2011 to 84 per 100,000 in 2016. An average of 799 cases per year were hospitalized with LB-associated diagnoses from 2005 to 2016. The hospitalization incidence rate (HIR) ranged from 1.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in 2005 to 1.5 in 2011, with no statistically significant trend. We observed seasonality with a peak during the summer, significant interregional variations, and a bimodal age distribution in LB incidence and HIR, with higher incidence among children aged 5 to 9 and those aged 60 years. Erythema migrans affected 633 out of 667 (95%) of patients at the primary care level. Among hospitalized cases, the most common manifestation was neuroborreliosis (4,906/9,594; 51%). Conclusion: Public health strategies should focus on high-incidence age groups and regions during the months with the highest incidence rates and should emphasize prevention measures such as regular tick checks after exposure and prompt removal to avoid infection.

Author(s): Septfons A, Goronflot T, Jaulhac B, Roussel V, De Martino S, Guerreiro S, Launay T, Fournier L, De Valk H, Figoni J, Blanchon T, Couturier E

Publishing year: 2019

Pages: 1-11

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