RVF: EFSA assess surveillance measures

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has completed its series of assessments on Rift Valley Fever (RVF). On 4 November 2020, the EFSA published its scientific opinion examining the effectiveness of surveillance and control measures in the EU.

RVF is a viral zoonosis that primarily affects animals, but also has the capacity to infect humans if they come into contact with the blood, body fluids or tissues of infected animals, or through bites from infected mosquitoes. 

The disease is endemic in sub-Saharan Africa and in the Arabian Peninsula, but has never been reported in continental Europe, although its range is expanding. In 2018 to 2019, it reappeared after ten years in Mayotte, where there have been outbreaks involving multiple human cases.

Source: EFSA, 4 November 2020