Epidemiological situation of listeriosis in Spain between 2013 and 2022 with administrative data from surveillance and health systems

e202609053

Authors

  • Alberto Carbajo Otero Hospital General de la Defensa Orad y Gajías. Ministerio de Defensa. Zaragoza. España. / Doctorando investigador. Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED). Madrid. España. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7069-9417
  • María Guerrero Vadillo Centro Nacional de Epidemiología. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Madrid. España. / CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP). Madrid. España. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0575-789X
  • María del Carmen Varela Martínez Centro Nacional de Epidemiología. Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Madrid. España. / CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP). Madrid. España. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7754-4020

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.67113/resp.v100i1.1548

Keywords:

Epidemiological Surveillance, Hospitalization, Listeriosis, Neonatal listeriosis, Outbreak, Meningitis, Meningoencephalitis

Abstract

BACKGROUND // Listeriosis is widely distributed and has a high mortality rate in vulnerable populations. This study analyzed the epidemiological characteristics and temporal distribution of listeriosis in Spain during the period 2013-2022.

METHODS // A retrospective descriptive observational study was conducted studying Individual cases and epidemic outbreaks of listeriosis reported to RENAVE, as well as data recorded in the Minimum Basic Set of Hospital Discharge Data (CMBD) between 1 January 2013 and 31 December 2022. To perform the calculations, the data were statistically treated.

RESULTS // A total of 3,597 individual cases, 29 outbreaks and 4,466 hospital discharges for listeriosis were reported during the study period. The incidence trend for individual cases and hospital discharges records peak was reached in 2019. In both registries, the incidence was higher in men, children under one year, and older ages, with differences in incidence in the fifty/sixty-four age group. According to multivariate logistic regression in discharge records, being male (aOR=2.78) and over sixty-five years (aOR=2.05) were independently associated with death. The number of individual cases and hospital discharge records showed a marked seasonal pattern in the summer months, while the incidence of outbreaks was more stable. The case fatality rate was high in individual cases (18.44%) and in hospital discharges (16.07%). The hospitalization rate was 90.47% in individual cases.

CONCLUSIONS // The incidence of listeriosis in Spain is higher than the European Union average. Analysis of electronic hospital discharge records, together with surveillance data, provides a more complete epidemiological description. Control and prevention measures for this disease should be strengthened for the most affected groups, as well as for the highest-risk foods. The collecting information systems in the different registries must be improved.

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Published

2026-09-10

How to Cite

1.
Carbajo Otero A, Guerrero Vadillo M, Varela Martínez M del C. Epidemiological situation of listeriosis in Spain between 2013 and 2022 with administrative data from surveillance and health systems: e202609053. Rev Esp Salud Pública [Internet]. 2026 Sep. 10 [cited 2026 Sep. 12];100(1):18 páginas. Available from: https://ojs.sanidad.gob.es/index.php/resp/article/view/1548

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