title: Tick-borne encephalitis.
abstract: Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is a zoonotic arbovirus infection endemic to Russia and Eastern and Central Europe. Despite being a common and serious life-threatening disease for which a mass vaccination program was implemented in Austria, there is only limited reference to this disease in the English-language literature. TBE is transmitted to humans usually by the bite of a tick (either Ixodes persulcatus or Ixodes ricinus); occasionally, cases occur following consumption of infected unpasteurized milk. Transmission is seasonal and occurs in spring and summer, particularly in rural areas favored by the vector. TBE is a serious cause of acute central nervous system disease, which may result in death or long-term neurological sequelae. Effective vaccines are available in a few countries. The risk for travelers of acquiring TBE is increasing with the recent rise in tourism to areas of endemicity during spring and summer.
authors.affiliation: Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Dumpis
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Crook
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Oksi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001096:Arachnid Vectors / Q000821:virology; D004669:Encephalitis Viruses, Tick-Borne; D004675:Encephalitis, Tick-Borne / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy / Q000635:transmission; D006801:Humans; D018884:Ixodes / Q000821:virology