Between 2007 and 2010 a Q fever epidemic in Dutch dairy goat farms caused a large Q fever outbreak in human residents in the southern part of the Netherlands. Here we characterize the transmission of Coxiella burnetii, the aetiological agent of Q fever, between infected and susceptible dairy goat farms by estimating a spatial transmission kernel. In addition, we characterize the zoonotic transmission of C.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFZoonoses Public Health
February 2019
From 2007 through 2010, the Netherlands experienced the largest Q fever epidemic ever reported. This study integrates the outcomes of a multidisciplinary research programme on spatial airborne transmission of Coxiella burnetii and reflects these outcomes in relation to other scientific Q fever studies worldwide. We have identified lessons learned and remaining knowledge gaps.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA biologic wastewater treatment plant was identified as a common source for 2 consecutive Legionnaires' disease clusters in the Netherlands in 2016 and 2017. Sequence typing and transmission modeling indicated direct and long-distance transmission of Legionella, indicating this source type should also be investigated in sporadic Legionnaires' disease cases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAerobiologia (Bologna)
March 2016
The most recent IPCC report presented further scientific evidence for global climate change in the twenty-first century. Important secondary effects of climate change include those on water resource availability, agricultural yields, urban healthy living, biodiversity, ecosystems, food security, and public health. The aim of this explorative study was to determine the range of expected airborne pathogen concentrations during a single outbreak or release in a future climate compared to a historical climatic period (1981-2010).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAirborne pathogenic transmission from sources to humans is characterised by atmospheric dispersion and influence of environmental conditions on deposition and reaerosolisation. We applied a One Health approach using human, veterinary and environmental data regarding the 2009 epidemic in The Netherlands, and investigated whether observed human Q fever incidence rates were correlated to environmental risk factors. We identified 158 putative sources (dairy goat and sheep farms) and included 2339 human cases.
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