Teek met levensgevaarlijk TBE-virus volop in vakantiehotspots onder Nederlanders: Erika lag 4 dagen in coma

Summary:

A feature by Dutch current affairs programme EenVandaag on the risk of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) for Dutch travellers to Central and Northern Europe, illustrated by the case of Erika Bosker, who spent four days in a coma after being infected 21 years ago. The article explains that TBE, unlike Lyme disease, is transmitted immediately upon a tick bite via the tick’s saliva, and that the virus — while still rare in the Netherlands — occurs more than fifty times as often in Austria, where roughly 80% of the population is vaccinated as part of the national immunisation programme.

Prof. Gisa Gerold, Head of the Institute of Virology at the Medical University of Innsbruck, is interviewed on the importance of vaccination for travellers to risk areas, stressing that TBE cannot be treated once symptoms appear. An Institute member also appears in the accompanying video segment.