The first case of human infection with the Chamonda virus has been recorded in France.

The Shamonda virus belongs to bunyaviruses and is transmitted by infected biting midges. It was first identified in Nigeria in the mid-1960s, and in late July its presence was confirmed in Europe for the first time. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) reported that the virus has already been detected in livestock animals in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and Jersey.

According to French authorities, the leading hypothesis is that the patient was infected in eastern France, where the virus circulated among animals in the spring and summer of this year. According to ECDC information, the patient died in early October. They were undergoing treatment for a severe disease, which made them more susceptible to infections compared to the general population. Scientists and experts emphasize that to date no health risk has been identified for the general public, and a midge bite in a severely ill person does not pose a serious threat to other people.

According to data from the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety, in animals such as cattle, sheep, and goats, the virus can cause diarrhea, loss of appetite, decreased milk yield, as well as abortions and congenital malformations in newborns. In addition, the genetic material of the virus was detected in the brains of horses with fatal neurological symptoms in Switzerland and Germany.

Professor Tom Solomon of the University of Liverpool noted that the virus has circulated among animals for years, yet this is the first confirmed case of human infection. Professor Paul Hunter of the University of East Anglia added that the risk of human-to-human transmission can be considered extremely low, although not zero.