LAUSR

OBJECTIVE To assess the epidemiological situation of giardiasis in Poland in 2017. MATERIAL AND METHOD The assessment of the epidemiological situation of giardiasis in Poland was carried out on the basis of the results of the analysis of data from the annual bulletins “Infectious diseases and poisoning in Poland”, information from forms on individual cases provided by PSSE employees through the Epidemiological Case Reporting System (SRWE), information on outbreaks transferred by PSSE employees through the Registry of Epidemic Outbreaks (ROE), as well as data on deaths from the Department of Demographic Studies of the Central Statistical Office. RESULTS This is the first epidemiological report on giardiasis in Poland published in the epidemiological Chronicle. The number of new giardiasis cases registered in Poland in 2017 was 1 229 cases, incidence rate 3.2 per 100 000 population. Compared to previous years, the number of registered cases decreased. There were no deaths. Hospitalizations accounted for around 24.5% of all cases. All giardiasis cases met the criteria for the definition of a confirmed case. In 2017, there were 4 outbreaks of giardiasis. CONCLUSIONS The long-term decline in the number of cases and incidence in Poland indicates an improvement of the epidemiological situation. In comparison with epidemiological data for EU / EEA countries, Poland does not stand out significantly in terms of the number of cases, incidence or seasonality distribution of cases.