Tuberculosis in Ukrainian War Refugees and Migrants in the Czech Republic and Slovakia: A Molecular Epidemiological Study.
Dohál M., Dvořáková V., Šperková M., Pinková M., Ghodousi A., Omrani M., Porvazník I., Rasmussen EM., Škereňová M., Krivošová M., Wallenfels J., Konstantynovska O., Walker TM., Nikolayevskyy V., Cirillo DM., Solovič I., Mokrý J.
BackgroundThe war in Ukraine has led to significant migration to neighboring countries, raising public health concerns. Notable tuberculosis (TB) incidence rates in Ukraine emphasize the immediate requirement to prioritize approaches that interrupt the spread and prevent new infections.MethodsWe conducted a prospective genomic surveillance study to assess migration's impact on TB epidemiology in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates from Ukrainian war refugees and migrants, collected from September 2021 to December 2022 were analyzed alongside 1574 isolates obtained from Ukraine, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia.ResultsOur study revealed alarming results, with historically the highest number of Ukrainian tuberculosis patients detected in the host countries. The increasing number of cases of multidrug-resistant TB, significantly linked with Beijing lineage 2.2.1 (p ConclusionsThe data showed that most infections were likely the result of reactivation of latent disease or exposure to TB before migration rather than recent transmission occurring within the host country. However, close monitoring, appropriate treatment, careful surveillance, and social support are crucial in mitigating future risks, though there is currently no evidence of local transmission in EU countries.