Spatiotemporal Analysis of West Nile Virus Epidemic in South Banat District, Serbia, 2017–2019
Sonja Radojicic,
Aleksandar Zivulj,
Tamas Petrovic,
Jakov Nisavic,
Vesna Milicevic,
Sandra Sipetic-Grujicic,
Dusan Misic,
Malgorzata Korzeniowska,
Slavoljub Stanojevic
Affiliations
Sonja Radojicic
Department of Infectious Animal Diseases and Diseases of Bees, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Aleksandar Zivulj
Veterinary Specialist Institute Pancevo, Novoseljanski Put 33, 13000 Pancevo, Serbia
Tamas Petrovic
Scientific Veterinary Institute Novi Sad, Rumenacki Put 20, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Jakov Nisavic
Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Vesna Milicevic
Scientific Veterinary Institute of Serbia, Janisa Janulisa 14 Street, 11107 Belgrade, Serbia
Sandra Sipetic-Grujicic
Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Epidemiology, Belgrade University, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Dusan Misic
Department of Functional Foods Development, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Chelmonskiego Street 37, 51-630 Wroclaw, Poland
Malgorzata Korzeniowska
Department of Functional Foods Development, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Chelmonskiego Street 37, 51-630 Wroclaw, Poland
Slavoljub Stanojevic
Directorate of National Reference Laboratories, Batajnicki Drum 10, 11080 Zemun, Serbia
West Nile virus (WNV) is an arthropod-born pathogen, which is transmitted from wild birds through mosquitoes to humans and animals. At the end of the 20th century, the first West Nile fever (WNF) outbreaks among humans in urban environments in Eastern Europe and the United States were reported. The disease continued to spread to other parts of the continents. In Serbia, the largest number of WNV-infected people was recorded in 2018. This research used spatial statistics to identify clusters of WNV infection in humans and animals in South Banat County, Serbia. The occurrence of WNV infection and risk factors were analyzed using a negative binomial regression model. Our research indicated that climatic factors were the main determinant of WNV distribution and were predictors of endemicity. Precipitation and water levels of rivers had an important influence on mosquito abundance and affected the habitats of wild birds, which are important for maintaining the virus in nature. We found that the maximum temperature of the warmest part of the year and the annual temperature range; and hydrographic variables, e.g., the presence of rivers and water streams were the best environmental predictors of WNF outbreaks in South Banat County.
