On 22 October, the French Ministries of Health and Agriculture reported the world’s first documented case of the Chamond virus in a human. A patient with severe immunodeficiency, who was being treated in Lyon, died in early October; a possible link between the infection and neurological complications is still being investigated.
Briefly about the main points
- France has reported the first documented case of the Chamond virus in a human.
- A patient with severe immunodeficiency died in early October in Lyon.
- The link between the infection and neurological complications is currently considered likely.
- The French authorities have not yet identified any general risk to the public.
What is known about the patient’s condition
According to the French authorities, the virus was detected in a patient with a serious underlying condition and a significantly compromised immune system. He was being treated at the Hospices Civils de Lyon university hospital complex and died in early October.
Specialists reported severe neurological complications. According to a preliminary assessment, these were very likely linked to Shamond’s infection, although the exact cause of death has not yet been established.
The theory regarding the infection and the associated risks are still being investigated
French epidemiologists suggest that the man may have become infected following a bite from a blood-sucking midge of the genus Culicoides in eastern France. This is a working hypothesis: the mechanism of transmission is still being investigated.
According to the French authorities« current assessment, no risk to the general public has been identified. The World Health Organisation and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control have been informed of the case; the investigation is being conducted using the »One Health’ approach, which brings together medical professionals, vets and environmental specialists.
The virus has already been detected in European livestock
The Shamonda virus belongs to the Simbu serogroup of orthobunaviruses. It was first identified in Nigeria in the mid-1960s; prior to that, the pathogen had been detected mainly in animals in Africa and Japan.
A new European variant of the virus was identified in dairy cattle in eastern France in June 2026. The animals exhibited fever, diarrhoea, lethargy and a decline in milk yield; during the summer, a related virus was also confirmed in Germany and Switzerland.
The single documented case in a human does not provide a basis for determining the typical course of the infection or its significance for the wider population. The role of the virus in the patient’s critical condition and the circumstances of the infection remain the subject of investigation.
