KAZALCI OKOLJA

Key message
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Approximately 2.5 million people die each year from gastrointestinal communicable diseases (GCD).
GCD, or infectious diarrhea, is the biggest problem in less developed countries, but even in developed countries, one episode of GCD occurs per inhabitant per year (Infectious Diseases, Tomažič, J., Strle, F.).
Similar to other countries, the incidence of GCD in Slovenia is estimated on the basis of received reports of gastrointestinal communicable diseases.
In 2021, compared to 2020, the incidence of GCD or foodborne infections increased by 12%. GCD of unnown pathogen, which represent the largest share of reports in Slovenia every year, are no longer recorded since 2018. In the first place are viral infections of the intestines, which are among the main causes of morbidity in childen arounf the world (Infectious diseases, Tomažič J, Strle F)
Campylobacteriosis, Clostridioides difficile, Salmonellosis and the pathogen E.coli predominate among bacterial pathogens.
The actual burden of GCD and foodborne diseases can only be estimated through research.


This indicator shows the number of reported (i.e. the incidence of) intestinal infectious diseases (IID) and foodborne diseases in Slovenia and some EU countries in the selected period.

Intestinal infectious diseases are diseases caused by various agents: viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites. They are transmitted faecally-orally (from faeces to mouth); usually through ingested food, water or unclean hands. Pursuant to the International Classification of Diseases ICD-10, they are classified among diagnoses A00 through A09, B15 and B17.2.

Incidence means the number of all newly determined cases of a certain illness in a defined population within a calendar year and is therefore a basic indicator of a phenomenon's dynamics (growth, decline, stagnation). Although incidence can be expressed in absolute numbers, it is usually expressed as a rate, calculated in relation to a certain population.

A person suffering from an intestinal infectious disease or a foodborne disease has digestion problems due to an infected gastro-intestinal tract, which is manifested by nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, elevated body temperature and diarrhoea. Intestinal infectious diseases represent a particular hazard to the elderly, people with chronic diseases, infants, children and pregnant women.


Charts

Figure ZD21-1: Incidence of the most commonly reported gastrointestinal communicable diseases (GCD), Slovenia, 2002-2016
Sources:

Druge opredeljene ČNB (A04.8, A05.8, A08.3, A08.5) (št. prijav/100.000 preb.)

Show data
  2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
All notified gastrointestinal communicable diseases (GCD) 997,5 1087,6 972,5 964,8 1008,9 1280,9 1563 1567,6 506,7 374,9
GCD , unknown pathogen 696,1 760,6 709,4 678,0 711,3 933,4 993,6 1014,6 0 0
Salmonellosis 17 19,5 19,5 14,2 32,4 18,6 13,9 12,7 12,3 20,4
Rotavirosis 78 107,5 68,1 70,7 96,2 89,5 59,8 66,5 30,5 64,3
Campylobacteriosis 48,9 48,0 45,4 48,4 54,3 60,5 76,1 66 59,9 60,8
Other GCD with known pathogen 17,5 10,9 4,3 7,0 5,6 8,8 7,9 10 6,4 6,9
Figure ZD21-2: Hospitalised because of gastrointestinal communicable diseases (GCD), Slovenia, 2019
Sources:

National Institute of Public Health, 2020 (2. 11. 2020)

Show data
  No. of aplications No of cases/100.000 residents
hepatitis E virus 1 0,05
hepatitis A virus 4 0,2
shigellas 6 0,3
Y. enterocolitica  9 0,4
listeriosis 18 0,9
parasites 24 1,1
other GCD with known pathogen 30 1,4
adenoviruses 126 6
E.coli 134 6,4
Salmonella spp; typhus and paratyphus 170 8,1
noroviruses 359 17,2
Cl difficile 473 22,6
campylobacters 514 24,6
rotaviruses 808 38,7
All reported GCD  2708 129,6
Figure ZD21-3: Incidence of Salmonella infections (number of infections/100.000 inhabitants), EU-27, from 2015 to 2019
Sources:

ECDC, Surveillance Atlas of Infectious Diseases, 2019 (2. 11. 2020)

Show data
State Unit  2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Portugal No. of cases/100.000 inh. 3,10 3,64 4,48 2,93 4,20
Greece No. of cases/100.000 inh. 4,30 6,82 6,24 5,96 6,00
Romania No. of cases/100.000 inh. 6,70 7,48 5,87 7,22 7,12
Ireland No. of cases/100.000 inh. 5,80 6,33 7,92 7,29 7,08
Cyprus No. of cases/100.000 inh. 7,70 9,08 6,90 5,09 7,08
Bulgaria No. of cases/100.000 inh. 14,90 10,04 11,21 8,31 8,49
UK No. of cases/100.000 inh. 14,60 15,14 15,36 14,28 14,58
France No. of cases/100.000 inh. 32,30 27,7 24,86 27,82 27,78
Estonia No. of cases/100.000 inh. 8,50 26,67 20,14 23,80 11,32
Slovenia No. of cases/100.000 inh. 19,40 15,07 13,31 13,26 17,40
Austria No. of cases/100.000 inh. 18,00 16,28 19,00 17,43 21,06
Latvia No. of cases/100.000 inh. 19,10 23,06 11,54 21,14 22,81
Poland No. of cases/100.000 inh. 21,70 25,6 23,50 23,87 22,05
Malta No. of cases/100.000 inh. 29,30 36,37 23,25 24,39 26,54
Denmark No. of cases/100.000 inh. 16,30 18,94 18,56 20,20 19,27
Luxembourg No. of cases/100.000 inh. 18,80 18,74 19,98 22,43 21,34
Germany No. of cases/100.000 inh. 16,80 15,65 17,03 16,06 16,26
Sweden No. of cases/100.000 inh. 23,70 22,81 22,81 20,17 19,45
Finland No. of cases/100.000 inh. 30,20 27,55 27,89 25,96 21,29
Lithuania No. of cases/100.000 inh. 37,00 37,25 35,25 27,73 26,34
Hungary No. of cases/100.000 inh. 49,70 48,03 40,03 42,55 45,56
Slovakia No. of cases/100.000 inh. 89,30 97,65 106,51 124,76 91,59
Czech Republic No. of cases/100.000 inh. 117,70 110,01 108,45 102,74 122,15
Belgium No. of cases/100.000 inh. 0,00 23,85 20,24 25,95 22,06
Italy No. of cases/100.000 inh. 6,30 6,81 5,52 6,01 5,39
Spain No. of cases/100.000 inh. 43,30 0 0,00 0,00 0,00

Goals

The incidence of foodborne diseases in Slovenia is high and is an important public health issue.

Within a broader framework, guidelines have been set at the European level by the Global Foodborne Infections Network programme (GFN 2013) that includes Slovenia as a member state and that is committed to enhancing the capacity of countries to detect, respond and prevent foodborne and other enteric infections.

The goals of in-depth monitoring of the indicator ‘Incidence of foodborne diseases or intestinal infectious diseases’ are as follows:

  • to assess trends as regards the incidence of acute gastroenterocolitis and individual agents of IID or foodborne diseases;
  • to estimate the seriousness of an outbreak as regards the number of hospitalisations and deaths due to IID or foodborne diseases;
  • to assess risk to human health;
  • to make informed decisions as regards public health measures;
  • based on the obtained data, inform and educate the general and professional public in order to reduce the incidence of IID or foodborne diseases.

 

 


Methodology

Date of data source summarization