Seroprevalence of hepatitis e virus in domestic pigs and wild boars in Switzerland.

Hepatitis E is considered an emerging human viral disease in industrialized countries. Studies from Switzerland report a human seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV) of 2.6-21%, a range lower than in adjacent European countries. The aim of this study was to determine whether HEV seroprevalence in domestic pigs and wild boars is also lower in Switzerland and whether it is increasing and thus indicating that this zoonotic viral infection is emerging. Serum samples collected from 2,001 pigs in 2006 and 2011 and from 303 wild boars from 2008 to 2012 were analysed by ELISA for the presence of HEV-specific antibodies. Overall HEV seroprevalence was 58.1% in domestic pigs and 12.5% in wild boars. Prevalence in domestic pigs was significantly higher in 2006 than in 2011. In conclusion, HEV seroprevalence in domestic pigs and wild boars in Switzerland is comparable with the seroprevalence in other countries and not increasing. Therefore, prevalence of HEV in humans must be related to other factors than prevalence in pigs or wild boars.

Reforms of the pre-graduate curriculum for medical students: the Bologna process and beyond.

For several years, all five medical faculties of Switzerland have embarked on a reform of their training curricula for two reasons: first, according to a new federal act issued in 2006 by the administration of the confederation, faculties needed to meet international standards in terms of content and pedagogic approaches; second, all Swiss universities and thus all medical faculties had to adapt the structure of their curriculum to the frame and principles which govern the Bologna process. This process is the result of the Bologna Declaration of June 1999 which proposes and requires a series of reforms to make European Higher Education more compatible and comparable, more competitive and more attractive for Europeans students. The present paper reviews some of the results achieved in the field, focusing on several issues such as the shortage of physicians and primary care practitioners, the importance of public health, community medicine and medical humanities, and the implementation of new training approaches including e-learning and simulation. In the future, faculties should work on several specific challenges such as: students' mobility, the improvement of students' autonomy and critical thinking as well as their generic and specific skills and finally a reflection on how to improve the attractiveness of the academic career, for physicians of both sexes.