France reports first human case of livestock virus Shamonda
Authorities say the case appears isolated and likely came from a midge bite, with no health risk to the general public identified.
- On Thursday, French health authorities announced the first documented human infection with the Shamonda virus, involving a severely immunocompromised patient who died in early October.
- The virus typically spreads through Culicoides midge bites, primarily affecting livestock like cattle, and had only been identified in animals since its first European detection this summer.
- Investigators suspect the patient contracted the virus via a Culicoides midge bite in eastern France, where neurological complications observed before death were "very likely linked" to the infection.
- French officials notified the World Health Organization and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, stating there is "no health risk to the general public identified at this time."
- Experts emphasize the patient's serious underlying illness made them uniquely susceptible; this finding does not necessarily suggest significant risk to otherwise healthy individuals.
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WHO Reports First Human Infection with Shamonda Virus in France; Patient Dies
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Thursday (local time) reported the first documented case of human infection with the Shamonda virus in France, with the patient, who was immunocompromised, dying after the infection. World News | WHO Reports First Human Infection with Shamonda Virus in France; Patient Dies.
Man dies in France from cattle virus once thought harmless to humans, and it’s already on Spanish farms
A severely ill man has died in France after becoming the first person known to catch Shamonda, a virus carried by biting midges that was thought unable to infect humans. It’s already turned up on Spanish cattle farms, though French authorities say the general public isn’t at risk. French health authorities announced on Thursday October 22 that a man being treated for a serious illness in Lyon… Source
An immunocompromised man died in France of brain complications "most likely related" to the Shamonda virus, in early October. This is a world first. So far, this virus transmitted to animals by flies had never been documented in human beings. On Thursday 22 October 2026 the authorities assure that no health risk is identified for the general population.
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