France Reports World's First Human Shamonda Virus Case After Patient Dies

France Reports World

France has reported the first recorded human case of Shamonda virus, after a patient in his 60s from the Lyon area died in early October. Health authorities were notified of the case on October 7. The man was severely immunocompromised and was being treated for a serious neurological condition at the Hospices Civils de Lyon when the infection was detected in several biological samples.

Shamonda virus normally circulates among livestock, including cattle, sheep, goats, horses and alpacas, and is spread between animals by tiny biting midges of the genus Culicoides. A new strain, known as Shamonda-Europe, has spread rapidly across Europe since the summer, and by October 20 the virus had been detected in cattle in 52 French departments, as well as in sheep and a horse.

French authorities, the World Health Organization and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control all say no risk to the general public has been identified so far. The WHO described it as an isolated human case that is unlikely to lead to wider spread, and no human-to-human transmission has been reported. There is currently no commercially available vaccine against the virus. Investigations are still under way into how the patient became infected and whether the virus caused or contributed to his death.

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