Giardiasis (lambliasis) in Poland in 2018 and 2019.

OBJECTIVE Assessment of the epidemiological situation of giardiasis in Poland in years 2018 and 2019. MATERIAL AND METHOD The assessment of the epidemiological situation of giardiasis in Poland was performed on the basis of data analysis results of the annual bulletins "Infectious diseases and poisoning in Poland" for the years 2008-2019, information from case report forms provided by employees of Powiat Sanitary-Epidemiological Stations (PSSE) through the Epidemiological Case Reporting System (SRWE), as well as information on outbreaks reported by PSSE employees through the Registry of Epidemic Outbreaks (ROE). RESULTS The number of new cases of giardiasis recorded in Poland in 2018 was 928 (the incidence rate was 2.4 per 100,000 population), while in 2019 it was 784 (the incidence per 100,000 population was 2.0). Compared to previous years, in 2018-2019 there was a further decrease in the number of registered cases. There have been no reported deaths from giardiasis in 2018-2019. Hospitalizations accounted for approximately 19.4% of all cases in 2018 and 15.2% in 2019. In 2019, there were 3 cases that met the definition of a probable case, the remaining cases, both in 2018 and 2019, were confirmed cases. In 2018, there were 7 outbreaks of giardiasis, which is an increase compared to 2017. In 2019, the number of reported outbreaks increased further and amounted to 11. CONCLUSIONS The decrease in the number of cases and incidence in Poland over the last few years indicates an improvement in the epidemiological situation. Compared to the EU/EEA average for 2018 and 2019, Poland does not diverge significantly in terms of the number of cases or incidence, however differences occur in the distribution of cases by age and gender, and in the long-term trend.