Clinical and Experimental Hepatology
eISSN: 2449-8238
ISSN: 2392-1099
Clinical and Experimental Hepatology
Current issue Archive Manuscripts accepted About the journal Editorial board Abstracting and indexing Subscription Contact Instructions for authors Publication charge Ethical standards and procedures
Editorial System
Submit your Manuscript
SCImago Journal & Country Rank
Search
Editorial Policies
Sarajevo Declaration on Integrity and Visibility of Scholarly Publications
Share:
Send email
Share:
abstract:
Original paper

Incidence of echinococcosis in Poland 2015-2023 based on administrative health records maintained by the National Health Fund

Aleksandra Popławska-Ferenc
1, 2
,
Mariusz Panczyk
3
,
Marta Hreńczuk
1
,
Monika Dybicz
4
,
Andrzej Śliwczynski
5
,
Olga Tronina
6
,
Joanna Gotlib-Małkowska
3
,
Piotr Małkowski
1, 2

  1. Department of Surgical and Transplantation Nursing and Extracorporeal Treatment, Medical University of Warsaw, Poland
  2. Department of General and Transplant Surgery, Medical University of Warsaw, Poland
  3. Department of Education and Research in Health Sciences, Medical University of Warsaw, Poland
  4. Chair and Department of General Biology and Parasitology, Medical University of Warsaw, Poland
  5. National Medical Institute of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration, Warsaw, Poland
  6. Faculty of Medicine, Lazarski University, Warsaw, Poland
Clin Exp HEPATOL 2026; 12
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5114/ceh.2026.159418
Online publish date: 2026/03/30
View full text Get citation
 
PlumX metrics:
Introduction
Echinococcosis is a zoonotic parasitic disease caused by the larval stages of Echinococcus tapeworms. In Europe, the two species of greatest public health concern are Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato (s.l.) and Echinococcus multilocularis. Numerous observations of clinical cases in Poland, together with reports suggesting that official statistics underestimate infection rates, motivated an analysis of data from the National Health Fund (NHF), the national health payer in Poland. This study aimed to 1) determine the annual number of echinococcosis cases and their subtypes, 2) assess regional variation, 3) assess the age and sex distribution of patients.

Material and methods
Data were obtained from NHF records and annual demographic statistics from Statistics Poland. Poisson regression was used to calculate incidence and trends. All analyses were performed in STATISTICA software, with the significance level of a = 0.05.

Results
Between 2015 and 2023 (excluding the COVID-19 pandemic), the incidence rate of echinococcosis in Poland exceeded 1 per 100,000 population. Infections due to E. granulosus were the most prevalent, accounting for 42-53% of cases, while E. multilocularis infections represented 16-19%. The remaining 35-39% of cases were classified as unspecified echinococcosis. The highest numbers of E. granulosus and E. multilocularis infections occurred in the northern and eastern regions (i.e., voivodships) of Poland: Zachodniopomorskie, Pomorskie, Warmińsko-Mazurskie, Podlaskie, Mazowieckie, Lubelskie, Podkarpackie, and Małopolskie. Women were slightly more often affected than men, with an increased prevalence after the age 50, peaking between ages 70 and 74.

Conclusions
The number of confirmed echinococcosis cases in Poland substantially exceeds previously reported epidemiological estimates. These findings indicate an urgent need for stronger public education, intensified preventive strategies, and improved diagnostic and therapeutic coordination.

keywords:

epidemiology of echinococcosis in Poland, subtypes, regional, sex and age patterns of echinococcosis in Poland
Termedia
About us Contact
Copyright notice Privacy policy Advertising policy Contact us
Quick links
Journals Books eBooks Events
© 2026 Termedia Sp. z o.o.
Developed by Termedia.