ABSTRACT
Introduction: Legionellosis is the common name for infections caused by bacteria belonging to the genus Legionella. The most severe clinical presentation is an interstitial pneumonia, named Legionnaires' disease, caused by Legionella pneumophila. The disease is subject to mandatory reporting and laboratory tests are required to confirm the diagnosis. This article summarises the results of the National Surveillance System (NSS) for legionellosis for the year 2021, coordinated and managed by the Istituto Superiore di Sanita (ISS). This report highlights also the microbiological surveillance data from the national reference laboratory for legionellosis of the ISS. Materials and methods: The surveillance forms, filled in by the doctors who diagnose legionellosis, are analyzed by the NSS for possible sources of infection, clinical picture and etiological assessment. In parallel with the NSS there is a European Surveillance System for Travel associated Legionnaires 'disease, the European Legionnaires' Disease Surveillance Network (ELDSNet).
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Event-based surveillance (EBS) complements traditional surveillance to identify, track and critically appraise the potential public health (PH) impact of infectious diseases and other health threats. The Ministry of Health, the Istituto Superiore di Sanita, regional health authorities with the support of international partnerships shaped EBS in Italy into a flexible, decentralized, and sustainable system that operates through the existing public health workforce with no additional costs. We report the early activation of EBS in Italy, from mass gatherings to its systematic contribution to risk monitoring during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methods: Italian EBS analysts aim to detect cases/clusters of infectious diseases of PH impact in Italy mainly monitoring MedISys and Google Alerts. A risk assessment matrix was designed to favour coherence in the classification of events. In 2019, the analysts assessed the sustainability of the operations model though an online survey.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: 2020 will be remembered as the year of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused 2,107,166 cases and 74,159 deaths in Italy as of December 31st. At the same time, protective measures against COVID-19 have proved to be effective for other infectious pathogens, since we noticed the absence or reduction of some infectious diseases, such as measles and seasonal flu. Legionellosis may also have been affected by these measures. Legionellosis is a form of interstitial pneumonia subject to mandatory reporting and laboratory tests are required to confirm the diagnosis. This article summarises the results of the Italian National Surveillance System (INSS) for legionellosis, coordinated and managed by the Istituto Superiore di Sanita (ISS), for the year 2020. Furthermore, this report shows the microbiological surveillance data from the National Reference Laboratory for Legionellosis of the ISS. Materials and methods: The surveillance forms, filled in by the doctors who diagnose legionellosis, are analyzed by the NSS for possible sources of infection, clinical picture and etiological assessment. In parallel with the INSS there is a European Surveillance System for travel-associated Legionnaires' disease, the European Legionnaires' Disease Surveillance Network (ELDSNet).