Emergence of Toscana Virus in Europe
Emergence of Toscana Virus in Europe
Toscana virus (TOSV) is an arthropodborne virus first identified in 1971 from the sandfly Phlebotomus perniciosus in central Italy. Many case reports in travelers and clinical research and epidemiologic studies conducted around the Mediterranean region have shown that TOSV has a tropism for the central nervous system (CNS) and is a major cause of meningitis and encephalitis in countries in which it circulates. In central Italy, TOSV is the most frequent cause of meningitis from May to October, far exceeding enteroviruses. In other northern Mediterranean countries, TOSV is among the 3 most prevalent viruses associated with meningitis during the warm seasons. Therefore, TOSV must be considered an emerging pathogen. Here, we review the epidemiology of TOSV in Europe and determine questions that should be addressed in future studies. Despite increasing evidence of its major role in medicine as an emerging cause of CNS infections, TOSV remains an unstudied pathogen, and few physicians are aware of its potential to cause CNS infections.
Toscana virus (TOSV) was originally isolated in 1971 from the sandfly Phlebotomus perniciosus collected in Monte Argentario (Grosseto province, central Italy) Thus far, most clinical and epidemiologic studies have been conducted in Italy, although studies from other Mediterranean countries have been published recently. From these, TOSV appears to be 1 of the 3 major viral pathogens involved in aseptic meningitis acquired during the summer in these countries. A bibliographic search using "Toscana virus" as keyword in the PubMed database retrieved 54 research and review articles. Less than 50% of them report imported or autochthonous human cases acquired in Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, and Cyprus. Even though evidence that TOSV plays a major role in human disease is increasing, it remains poorly studied, and physicians have little awareness of its potential to cause CNS infections.
Toscana virus (TOSV) is an arthropodborne virus first identified in 1971 from the sandfly Phlebotomus perniciosus in central Italy. Many case reports in travelers and clinical research and epidemiologic studies conducted around the Mediterranean region have shown that TOSV has a tropism for the central nervous system (CNS) and is a major cause of meningitis and encephalitis in countries in which it circulates. In central Italy, TOSV is the most frequent cause of meningitis from May to October, far exceeding enteroviruses. In other northern Mediterranean countries, TOSV is among the 3 most prevalent viruses associated with meningitis during the warm seasons. Therefore, TOSV must be considered an emerging pathogen. Here, we review the epidemiology of TOSV in Europe and determine questions that should be addressed in future studies. Despite increasing evidence of its major role in medicine as an emerging cause of CNS infections, TOSV remains an unstudied pathogen, and few physicians are aware of its potential to cause CNS infections.
Toscana virus (TOSV) was originally isolated in 1971 from the sandfly Phlebotomus perniciosus collected in Monte Argentario (Grosseto province, central Italy) Thus far, most clinical and epidemiologic studies have been conducted in Italy, although studies from other Mediterranean countries have been published recently. From these, TOSV appears to be 1 of the 3 major viral pathogens involved in aseptic meningitis acquired during the summer in these countries. A bibliographic search using "Toscana virus" as keyword in the PubMed database retrieved 54 research and review articles. Less than 50% of them report imported or autochthonous human cases acquired in Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, and Cyprus. Even though evidence that TOSV plays a major role in human disease is increasing, it remains poorly studied, and physicians have little awareness of its potential to cause CNS infections.
