In North Macedonia, health authorities have confirmed that the total number of people infected with West Nile fever has reached 50 cases, as six new cases were registered in just one day.
Among them is the first confirmed case in Kumanovo, a 65-year-old man with a chronic illness, who is admitted to the Infectious Diseases Clinic in Skopje.
According to the Public Health Center in Kumanovo, the patient had not traveled abroad before the onset of symptoms, indicating active local transmission of the virus.
His health condition is serious due to the presence of chronic diseases, including diabetes. The authorities have conducted an epidemiological survey with the family and have disinfected the facility where the infected person was staying, as well as the areas where he may have had contact with infected mosquitoes.
In addition to Kumanova, five more cases were registered in the Skopje region: three patients over the age of 70 from Gazi Baba municipality, a 26-year-old from Zelenikovo and a 59-year-old from Aerodrom.
Epidemiologists warn that the increase in cases in the capital and surrounding areas indicates an active transmission through mosquitoes during the summer, appealing for individual protection with repellents and protective nets, especially for the elderly and people with chronic diseases.
Almost half of the patients diagnosed this summer were hospitalized at the Infectious Diseases Clinic in Skopje due to the severe neuroinvasive form of the virus, which can cause inflammation of the brain and meninges.
So far, five people have died from West Nile fever in North Macedonia.
Health authorities continue to monitor the epidemiological situation and call on citizens to seek medical help in time if flu-like symptoms appear, accompanied by neurological signs.
