[en] Between 2006 and 2010, northwestern Europe experienced its first significant bluetongue virus (BTV) outbreak, driven by the spread of BTV-8, which had major repercussions on the European livestock sector. While BTV-3 was first identified in Europe in Italy in 2017, a new introduction of the virus was reported in 2023, in the Netherlands, and subsequently spread rapidly across the continent. A limited number of BTV-3 outbreaks were notified in Belgium in 2023, leading to the loss of its BTV-free status. In the following year, 2024, the virus spread throughout the country in a short time period. This study describes the impact of BTV-3 circulation in Belgium in 2024, detailing both its geographic spread and the associated increase in mortality, reduced births recorded, and decline in milk production among ruminants. Furthermore, preliminary results on the effectiveness of field vaccination and maternal immunity transfer are presented, as well as critical gaps that hinder the development of a robust, evidence-based management strategy. As the epidemiological situation is expected to become more complex in the future, due to the co-circulation of multiple BTV serotypes and other Culicoides-borne diseases, such as EHDV, effective collaboration and communication among stakeholders and international authorities will be crucial for implementing measures to mitigate the spread of these diseases.
Disciplines :
Veterinary medicine & animal health
Author, co-author :
Van Leeuw, Virginie; Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
De Leeuw, Ilse ; National Reference Laboratory for Bluetongue, Service of Exotic and Vector-Borne Diseases, Sciensano, 1080 Brussels, Belgium
Degives, Nicolas; Coordination of Veterinary Activities and Veterinary Epidemiology, Sciensano, 1080 Brussels, Belgium
Depoorter, Pieter; Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Hanon, Jean-Baptiste; Coordination of Veterinary Activities and Veterinary Epidemiology, Sciensano, 1080 Brussels, Belgium
Hooyberghs, Jozef ; Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Linden, Annick ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des maladies infectieuses et parasitaires (DMI) > Santé et pathologies de la faune sauvage
Praet, Laura ; Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Raemaekers, Marc; Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Saegerman, Claude ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des maladies infectieuses et parasitaires (DMI) > Epidémiologie et analyse des risques appliqués aux sciences vétérinaires
Simons, Xavier ; Coordination of Veterinary Activities and Veterinary Epidemiology, Sciensano, 1080 Brussels, Belgium
Sohier, Charlotte; National Reference Laboratory for Bluetongue, Service of Exotic and Vector-Borne Diseases, Sciensano, 1080 Brussels, Belgium
Steurbaut, Norbert; Keiland, 9400 Ninove, Belgium
Sury, Amandine ; Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Thiry, Etienne ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des maladies infectieuses et parasitaires (DMI)
Zientara, Stephan ; Animal Health Laboratory, Agence Nationale de Sécurité Sanitaire de L'alimentation, de L'environnement et du Travail, 94701 Maisons-Alfort Cedex, France
Mauroy, Axel; Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
De Regge, Nick; National Reference Laboratory for Bluetongue, Service of Exotic and Vector-Borne Diseases, Sciensano, 1080 Brussels, Belgium
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