This is a first in mainland France at such a latitude: an autochthonous case of dengue, that is to say probably transmitted locally by a mosquito, was recorded in Ile-de-France, announced Tuesday 17 October health authorities. The case was identified in Limeil-Brévannes (Val-de-Marne), about fifteen kilometers southeast of Paris.
In a press release, the regional health agency (ARS) confirmed that it was the “first indigenous case of dengue in Île-de-France”.
This means that the person has not recently traveled to regions of the world, such as the Antilles, where this virus transmitted from one person to another by tiger mosquitoes circulates widely. This means that the person probably became infected on site after being bitten by one of these mosquitoes.
Around thirty similar cases recorded in mainland France in 2023
The presence of the tiger mosquito has continued to increase for almost twenty years in mainland France. It is facilitated by global warming, which is leading to an unprecedented increase in indigenous cases of dengue fever.
Transmissions had until now been observed in regions in the south of the country, with a climate a priori more favorable to the tiger mosquito. The case mentioned by the ARS of Ile-de-France is therefore the first in a northern region.
In 2022, the epidemiological situation with regard to dengue in mainland France was “exceptional”, according to a report published this summer by Public Health France. Indigenous transmissions last year alone exceeded the total number of cases identified over 2010-2021 (66 cases, compared to 48). For the current year, around thirty cases have already been recorded.
Dengue is a viral disease that results in high fever with, in rare cases, progression to a more serious form which causes, among other things, bleeding. The occurrence of death, however, is very rare – approximately 0.01% of all cases.
The Antilles have been in an epidemic phase since mid-August. Health authorities monitor profiles at risk of serious forms, including patients with sickle cell anemia.