(Re-)emerging infectious diseases and outbreaks
Outbreak response
The Institute of Tropical Medicine has a rich history of being involved in outbreak investigation, research and response. This stretches from our historic and continued involvement in outbreaks of Ebola and Marburg to more recent work related to cholera and mpox.
ITM's Outbreak Research Team is always on standby to do research interventions during outbreaks in the world.
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Ready for the next outbreak?
Listen to Transmission, the brand new podcast series of the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp. First season "Outbreaks and emerging infectious diseases" is out now!
Mpox
Since the first Belgian case of mpox was detected at ITM in May 2022, we have learned a lot about the virus and the way it spreads. We found evidence of asymptomatic infections among individuals visiting ITM’s sexual health clinic for STI testing, were able to show that the transmissible virus is often present before the patient has any symptoms, and introduced a new vaccination technique to better use the vaccine stock and help more people at risk. Meanwhile, ITM has also investigated several mpox outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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COVID-19
In March 2020, a 'pneumonia of unknown cause' forced the world into an unprecedented shutdown. As travel ceased, our Travel Clinic activities ground to a halt. Our dedicated physicians, infectious disease specialists, virologists, and laboratory staff swiftly pivoted towards the frontline of clinical response, working tirelessly to address the evolving COVID-19 pandemic. They were joined by our team of epidemiologists, public health researchers and other experts, all contributing to a wide range of international and national research projects.
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Educating future generations
Outbreak Investigations and Research
Global Health in times of crises
Sustainable Approaches to Infectious Disease Control and Elimination
Ebola
Since the emergence of the deadly Ebola virus in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of the Congo, in 1976, ITM has been vigilant in monitoring and responding to new outbreaks. But it was in 2014, during the West African outbreak, that our commitment became widely known.
In Belgium, we developed and implemented essential protocols, training programmes and infrastructure to effectively manage potential Ebola cases, we prepared diagnostic facilities within our BSL3+ laboratories, and served as a national reference for governmental bodies, organisations, and the general public. We collaborate closely with federal and Flemish authorities, offering guidance and support to combat this global health threat.
In Guinea, we ran a large blood plasma trial for Ebola survivors as potential treatment.
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Vector-borne diseases
Vector-borne diseases, transmitted by parasites, viruses and bacteria through vectors, are a major global health concern, as they cause more than 700,000 deaths every year. Since 2014, outbreaks of malaria, human African trypanosomiasis (also known as sleeping sickness), leishmaniasis, and arboviruses like Chagas disease, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis and Zika, have negatively impacted communities, causing fatalities and straining healthcare systems across many countries. Due to globalisation and climate change, they are rapidly evolving from tropical to global health threats, and we are closely monitoring this evolution.
