SerPUBLIC HEALTH SURVEILLANCE OF TRAVEL-ASSOCIATED LEGIONNAIRES’ DISEASE IN EUROPE AND MONTENEGRObian
Abstract
The aim of this study is to show how public health surveillance of travel-associated Legionnaires’ disease
was conducted in Europe, as well as in Montenegro. The estimations of the European Centre for Disease
Prevention and Control (ECDC) indicate that every year about one thousand tourists from Europe get
infected by legionellae during their holiday and stay at hotels across the continent. The European
Legionnaires’ Disease Surveillance Network (ELDSNet) was established with the aim to detect, control
and prevent cases, clusters and sources of outbreaks of travel-associated Legionnaires’ disease within
the European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA), and to assist with detection and response
to outbreaks outside the EU/EEA. Sharing information leads to concrete and timely actions of member
states of ELDSNet, so that residents of the EU/EEA who travel abroad are protected. ECDC recommends
a set of measures that should be followed by public health authorities and tourist sector of the country
which was visited by the traveler who caught this disease. If the measures are not carried out, information
is published online and European tour operators can use the information when booking holiday packages
abroad. Operating procedures provide a set of common measures which should be followed by all EU/
EEA member states involved in the protection of their residents against Legionnaires’ disease. Each case
of Legionnaires’ disease which is reported in tourists, who stayed in Montenegro, is epidemiologically
analyzed according to the operating procedures of ELDS Network.
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