Volume 30, Number 2—February 2024
Synopsis
Parechovirus A Circulation and Testing Capacities in Europe, 2015–2021
Laura Bubba
, Eeva K. Broberg, Thea K. Fischer, Peter Simmonds, Heli Harvala, and European Non-polio Enterovirus Network working group
, Eeva K. Broberg, Thea K. Fischer, Peter Simmonds, Heli Harvala, and European Non-polio Enterovirus Network working group
Table
Information about institutions included in study of parechovirus testing, surveillance, and genotyping capacities, Europe*
| Country (region)† | Institution type | PeV-A testing capacity | Timeframe of data | National surveillance | Testing trigger | Genotyping capacity | Routine genotyping |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austria |
Hospital virology or microbiology laboratory |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No |
Upon clinical request; all CSF from children <12 mo sent to institute tested for PeV-A |
Yes |
No |
| Denmark |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
Yes |
Surveillance system: positive samples from clinical microbiology laboratories after clinical request forwarded to SSI for sequencing |
Yes |
Yes |
| Finland |
Hospital virology/ microbiology laboratory |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
Yes‡ |
Upon clinical request |
Yes |
No |
| Ireland |
Diagnostic and virus reference laboratory |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No |
Passive surveillance system triggered by clinical request. PeV-A testing on all CSF from CNS virology screen from children <3 y |
No |
NA |
| Italy (Lombardy) |
Regional PH institute and academic institution |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No§ |
ILI and AFP surveillance, clinical requests |
Yes |
Yes |
| Italy (Lombardy) |
Hospital virology/ microbiology laboratory and academic institution |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No |
Hospital request for PeV-A testing in patients with clinical manifestations of meningo-encephalitis, encephalitis, or sepsis |
Yes |
Yes |
| Italy (Lombardy) |
Hospital microbiology |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No |
Upon clinical request |
No¶ |
NA |
| Slovenia |
Academia |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No |
Upon clinical request |
Yes |
No |
| Spain |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
Yes‡ |
No specific criteria; Nacional Centre for Microbiology’s Enterovirus and Parechovirus Reference Lab receives 500–700/y EV- and PeV-A-positive samples voluntarily submitted for genotyping and 20–30/y samples for EV/PeV testing |
Yes |
Yes |
| UK (England) |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
Yes‡ |
Samples from non-polio EV passive surveillance system. Voluntarily submitted samples PeV-A-positive samples for confirmation and genotyping. (voluntary because PeV-A is not a notifiable pathogen) |
Yes |
No |
| Netherlands |
Hospital virology/ microbiology laboratory and academic institution |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
Yes‡ |
Samples from the non-polio EV passive surveillance system |
Yes |
Yes |
| Norway |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2017 |
No |
Upon clinical request |
No |
No# |
| UK (Scotland) |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2017 |
No |
Upon clinical request |
Yes |
No# |
| Luxembourg |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No |
CSF from clinical requests |
No |
NA |
| Slovenia |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No§ |
ILI surveillance system |
No |
NA |
| Poland |
National PH institute |
Yes |
2015–2021 |
No |
Upon clinical request |
Yes |
No |
| Bulgaria |
National PH institute |
Not yet performed |
No data reported |
Not yet performed |
Not yet implemented |
NA |
NA |
| Czechia |
National PH institute |
No |
No data reported |
No |
None |
NA |
NA |
| Estonia |
National PH institute |
No |
No data reported |
No |
None |
NA |
NA |
| Hungary |
National PH institute |
No |
No data reported |
Unknown |
None |
NA |
NA |
| Slovak Republic | National PH institute | No | No data reported | No | None | NA | NA |
*ACP, acute flaccid paralysis; CNS, central nervous system; CSF, cerebrospinal fluid; EV, enteroviruses; PeV-A, parechovirus type A; ILI, influenza-like illness; PH, public health; SSI, Statens Serum Institut. †Countries of origin of the participating laboratories. ‡Implemented in the passive non-polio enterovirus surveillance. §All respiratory samples collected for the influenza-like illness surveillance were screened for parechoviruses. ¶Parechovirus-positive samples were sent to the regional reference laboratory for sequencing. #All samples included in the acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance are also screened for parechovirus.
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Page updated: January 25, 2024
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