Sentinel surveillance of Lyme disease risk in Canada, 2019: results from the first year of the Canadian Lyme Sentinel Network (CaLSeN)

Guillot, Camille; Badcock, Jackie; Clow, Katie; Cram, Jennifer; Dergousoff, Shaun; Dibernardo, Antonia; Evason, Michelle; Fraser, Erin; Galanis, Eleni; Gasmi, Salima; German, Greg J.; Howse, Douglas T.; Jardine, Claire; Jenkins, Emily; Koffi, Jules; Kulkarni, Manisha; Lindsay, L. Robbin; Lumsden, Genevieve; McKay, Roman; Morshed, Muhammad; Munn, Douglas; Nelder, Mark; Nocera, Joe; Ripoche, Marion; Rochon, Kateryn; Russell, Curtis; Slatculescu, Andreea; Talbot, Benoit; Thivierge, Karine; Voordouw, Maarten; Bouchard, Catherine; Leighton, Patrick

doi:https://open-science.canada.ca/handle/123456789/2330

Sentinel surveillance of Lyme disease risk in Canada, 2019: results from the first year of the Canadian Lyme Sentinel Network (CaLSeN)

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.14745/ccdr.v46i10a08

Language of the publication

English

Date

2020-10-01

Type

Article

Author(s)

Guillot, Camille
Badcock, Jackie
Clow, Katie
Cram, Jennifer
Dergousoff, Shaun
Dibernardo, Antonia
Evason, Michelle
Fraser, Erin
Galanis, Eleni
Gasmi, Salima
German, Greg J.
Howse, Douglas T.
Jardine, Claire
Jenkins, Emily
Koffi, Jules
Kulkarni, Manisha
Lindsay, L. Robbin
Lumsden, Genevieve
McKay, Roman
Morshed, Muhammad
Munn, Douglas
Nelder, Mark
Nocera, Joe
Ripoche, Marion
Rochon, Kateryn
Russell, Curtis
Slatculescu, Andreea
Talbot, Benoit
Thivierge, Karine
Voordouw, Maarten
Bouchard, Catherine
Leighton, Patrick

Publisher

The Public Health Agency of Canada

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Lyme disease is an emerging vector-borne zoonotic disease of increasing public health importance in Canada. As part of its mandate, the Canadian Lyme Disease Research Network (CLyDRN) launched a pan-Canadian sentinel surveillance initiative, the Canadian Lyme Sentinel Network (CaLSeN), in 2019. OBJECTIVES: To create a standardized, national sentinel surveillance network providing a real-time portrait of the evolving environmental risk of Lyme disease in each province. METHODS: A multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) approach was used in the selection of sentinel regions. Within each sentinel region, a systematic drag sampling protocol was performed in selected sampling sites. Ticks collected during these active surveillance visits were identified to species, and Ixodes spp. ticks were tested for infection with Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia miyamotoi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Babesia microti and Powassan virus. RESULTS: In 2019, a total of 567 Ixodes spp. ticks (I. scapularis [n=550]; I. pacificus [n=10]; and I. angustus [n=7]) were collected in seven provinces: British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The highest mean tick densities (nymphs/100 m2) were found in sentinel regions of Lunenburg (0.45), Montréal (0.43) and Granby (0.38). Overall, the Borrelia burgdorferi prevalence in ticks was 25.2% (0%-45.0%). One I. angustus nymph from British Columbia was positive for Babesia microti, a first for the province. The deer tick lineage of Powassan virus was detected in one adult I. scapularis in Nova Scotia. CONCLUSION: CaLSeN provides the first coordinated national active surveillance initiative for tick-borne disease in Canada. Through multidisciplinary collaborations between experts in each province, the pilot year was successful in establishing a baseline for Lyme disease risk across the country, allowing future trends to be detected and studied.

Plain language summary

As part of its mandate, the Canadian Lyme Disease Research Network (CLyDRN) launched a pan-Canadian sentinel surveillance initiative, the Canadian Lyme Sentinel Network (CaLSeN), in 2019. This was done to create a standardized, national sentinel surveillance network providing a real-time portrait of the evolving environmental risk of Lyme disease in each province. In 2019, a total of 567 Ixodes spp. ticks (I. scapularis [n=550]; I. pacificus [n=10]; and I. angustus [n=7]) were collected in seven provinces. The highest mean tick densities (nymphs/100 m2) were found in sentinel regions of Lunenburg (0.45), Montréal (0.43) and Granby (0.38). Overall, the Borrelia burgdorferi prevalence in ticks was 25.2% (0%–45.0%). One I. angustus nymph from British Columbia was positive for Babesia microti, a first for the province. The deer tick lineage of Powassan virus was detected in one adult I. scapularis in Nova Scotia. CaLSeN provides the first coordinated national active surveillance initiative for tick-borne disease in Canada. Through multidisciplinary collaborations between experts in each province, the pilot year was successful in establishing a baseline for Lyme disease risk across the country, allowing future trends to be detected and studied.