Overview
- Health officials published a UKHSA‑led report on Thursday confirming two probable cases of tick‑borne encephalitis (TBE) that were acquired in the UK last year, bringing the total of domestically acquired cases to six.
- One probable case followed a tick bite on Dartmoor and the other involved travel to the Peak District and the Outer Hebrides without a recalled bite, and surveillance shows infections remain limited to a few areas such as Thetford Forest, New Forest, Devon, North Yorkshire, Dartmoor and parts of Scotland.
- TBE is spread by infected tick bites and usually causes no or mild symptoms, but it can rarely invade the central nervous system and lead to long‑term neurological damage or, very rarely, death; a vaccine exists and is recommended for people with occupational exposure in endemic areas.
- The report also records 1,168 Lyme disease cases in England last year and lists travel‑acquired mosquito infections (including dengue, chikungunya, malaria and zika), and officials have revised contingency plans for invasive Aedes mosquitoes and West Nile virus at points of entry.
- Authorities say the overall public risk remains low but is evolving with warmer temperatures and travel patterns, so they are strengthening surveillance, advising targeted occupational vaccination, and asking visitors to tick‑prone woodlands and moorland to take simple bite‑prevention steps.