The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday that France reported the first documented case of a human infection with Shamonda virus, a virus which was previously detected only in animals.
Sharing details of the case in a social media post, , the “unidentified” patient died due to the infection in early October.
The man had been hospitalised in Lyon with an unrelated serious disease, a French health ministry official told reporters. The victim was in his 60s and lived in the Lyon area, local newspaper Le Progres reported.
“The patient was immunocompromised, which made them more vulnerable to infection and severe disease, and unfortunately died. My heartfelt condolences to their loved ones,” WHO’s Tedros wrote on social media.
The WHO Director-General further informed that the French patient was in an area where the Shamonda virus was circulating in animals and where Culicoides were also present.
” is in contact with French authorities who are collecting information to better understand the source of infection in the first human patient, possible routes of transmission and any potential risk to public health,” Tedros said.
The Shamonda virus is mainly found in livestock, especially cattle, sheep, goats, horses and alpacas.
It belongs to the same group as Schmallenberg virus, which causes reproductive disorders in livestock, Reuters reported.
The virus is thought to spread between animals by the bites of a midge, which is a small fly-like insect. Further studies are needed to fully understand transmission, according to WHO.
According to the United Nations, French authorities said that no health risk to the general public has been identified so far.
The one patient who died due to the virus had been in an area where the virus was circulating among animals and where Culicoides midges were present, WHO said.
First detected in cattle in Nigeria in 1965, it has since been found in parts of Africa and Asia.
First identified in Europe in late July, by October 20 cases had been reported in more than a dozen European countries, including in top cattle breeders France, Germany, Spain and Ireland.
France said the virus had likely been circulating in the country since the spring.
The latest was the first case where the virus was detected in a human.
Symptoms include fever, diarrhoea and reduced milk production.
More serious complications include abortions and severe foetal malformations. Neurological disorders have also been reported in some horses.
The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) says the long-term impact of the European variants remains uncertain.
The first documented patient (in France) was being treated for a serious illness at a hospital in Lyon and had a severely weakened immune system, Reuters reported.
The UN’s World Health Organization said that based on current information and knowledge of the transmission of closely related viruses, this was an isolated human case and unlikely to lead to wider spread at this time.
French authorities suspect infection occurred through a midge bite in eastern France, where the virus circulated among livestock earlier this year.
They said the patient’s brain complications were very likely linked to Shamonda, although investigations into the infection and death are continuing.
There are currently no commercially available vaccines against Shamonda virus, according to the internationally recognised World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).
Shamonda is not a disease listed by the WOAH and countries are therefore not required to notify WOAH of cases under its disease-specific reporting obligations.
Nor is it listed under the European Union’s Animal Health Law framework, meaning it is not subject to EU disease-specific mandatory surveillance.
Because of this, available data may not provide a complete picture of its spread.
(With inputs from Reuters)
