Giardioza (Lamblioza) w Polsce w 2021 roku

Giardiosis is a parasitic disease caused by the protozoa Giardia lamblia (also known as Giardia intestinalis and Giardia duodenalis), which causes gastrointestinal symptoms. Infection usually occurs through the ingestion of contaminated water/food or through contact with an infected person. In Poland, giardiasis is notifiable disease, acoording to the EU deffinition implement in the polish surveillance system.

The aim of this study is to asses epidemiological situation of giardiasis in Poland in 2021 and compare it to the previous years.

The assessment of the epidemiological situation of giardiasis in Poland in 2021 was performed on the basis of data from the annual bulletins "Infectious diseases and poisoning in Poland" for the years 2008-2021, data on individual cases collected for the purposes of epidemiological surveillance in the EpiBaza system and data from food-born outbreak investigations recorded in the Registry of Epidemic Outbreaks (ROE).

In 2021, 559 cases of giardiasis were reported in Poland (558 confirmed case, 1 probable case). There was an increase in the number of reported cases in comparision to 2020 by 56% and decrease to 2019 by 29%. Cases of giardiasis were reported in all voivodeships, with the highest incidence rate in Podlaskie voivodeship (9.1/100 000), incidence rate for Poland was 1.5/100 000. Giardiasis was diagnosed in patiens in all age group, the largest group of patiens were children (age groups 0-4 and 5-9). The hospitalization rate of patients diagnosed with giardiasis was 9.7% and was lower than in 2020, when it was 12.4%. As in previous years, no deaths from giardiasis were reported.

The number of cases of giardiasis has increased compared to 2020, but has not reached pre-pandemic levels. As in previous years, differences in the incidence by age and sex of people with the disease were noted when comparing data reported from Poland and EU/EEA countries.