The history of Lyme disease in Italy and its spread in the Italian territory

Lyme borreliosis (LB) is the most common vector-borne zoonotic inflammatory disease in the Northern Hemisphere. In Italy, the first case was diagnosed in 1985 in a woman in Liguria, while the second, in 1986 in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, documenting the infection in northern Italy. Both diagnoses were c...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers in pharmacology Vol. 14; p. 1128142
Main Authors: Trevisan, Giusto, Ruscio, Maurizio, Cinco, Marina, Nan, Katiuscia, Forgione, Patrizia, Di Meo, Nicola, Tranchini, Paolo, Nacca, Massimo, Trincone, Silvana, Rimoldi, Sara Giordana, Giacomet, Vania, Ricci, Michela, Melandri, Davide, Artioli, Stefania, Monteforte, Patrizia, Stinco, Giuseppe, Bonin, Serena
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Switzerland Frontiers Media S.A 16.06.2023
Subjects:
antibiotic therapy
associated symptoms
erythema migrans
Lyme borreliosis
Lyme in Italy
Pharmacology
Lyme borreliosis
Lyme in Italy
erythema migrans
antibiotic therapy
associated symptoms
ISSN:1663-9812, 1663-9812
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Lyme borreliosis (LB) is the most common vector-borne zoonotic inflammatory disease in the Northern Hemisphere. In Italy, the first case was diagnosed in 1985 in a woman in Liguria, while the second, in 1986 in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, documenting the infection in northern Italy. Both diagnoses were confirmed by serological assessment by an indirect immunofluorescence (IFI) technique. Borrelia cultivation from both Ixodes ricinus ticks and human lesions in Trieste (Friuli-Venezia Giulia) identified Borrelia afzelii as the prevalent genospecies; nevertheless, Borrelia garinii , Borrelia burgdorferi ( sensu stricto ), and Borrelia valaisiana (VS116 Group) were also detected, although less frequently. LB was also documented in other Italian regions: in Tuscany (1991), Trentino–Alto Adige (1995–1996), Emilia-Romagna (1998), Abruzzo (1998), and more recently, Lombardy. Nevertheless, data on LB in other Italian regions, especially in southern Italy and islands, are poor. The aim of this study is to document the spread of LB in Italy through the collection of data from LB patients in eight Italian hospitals located in different Italian regions. Diagnostic criteria for LB diagnosis are as follows: i) the presence of erythema migrans (EM) or ii) a clinical picture suggestive of LB, confirmed by serological tests and/or PCR positivity for Borrelia detection. In addition, data also included the place of residence (town and region) and the place where patients became infected. During the observation period, 1,260 cases were gathered from the participating centers. Although different in extent from northern Italy to central/southern Italy, this study shows that LB is widespread throughout Italy.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
Edited by: Joanna Zajkowska, Medical University of Bialystok, Poland
Reviewed by: Juan Carlos Sepúlveda-Arias, Technological University of Pereira, Colombia
Sara Savic, Scientific Veterinary Institute Novi Sad, Serbia
ISSN:1663-9812
1663-9812
DOI:10.3389/fphar.2023.1128142