Cases of tick-born encephalitis up by 25 percent in Czechia

The reported number of cases of tick-borne encephalitis in the Czech Republic has increased by 25 percent on the previous year, according to data released by the National Institute of Public Health on Thursday.

366 cases of the potentially fatal disease were reported by the end of July, up from 297 in the previous summer.

The Czech Republic, along with the Baltic States, has the highest number of tick-borne encephalitis cases in Europe. There is no cure for the disease, but an increasing number of Czechs (roughly 29 percent last year) get themselves vaccinated against the disease.

According to the National Institute of Public Health, the number of Czechs who contracted the tick-born Lyme disease also increased during the period between January and July.