North Macedonia records highest West Nile cases per million in Europe
ECDC data place North Macedonia highest in Europe by West Nile cases per capita; authorities report 43 cases and five deaths.
The latest weekly report from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) shows North Macedonia currently has the highest rate of reported West Nile virus cases per one million inhabitants in Europe.
According to the ECDC figures, the country records about 20.3 cases per one million people; Greece follows with 15.1 cases and Italy with 5.3 cases per million. Although absolute case counts are larger in countries such as Italy, Greece and Spain, when adjusted for population size North Macedonia has about 1.3 times the case rate of Greece, nearly 4 times that of Italy, 14 times Romania's rate and 23 times Spain's rate.
The ECDC report covered data up to Friday, when 37 infections from North Macedonia were registered; national totals have since risen to 43 confirmed cases.
Deaths and local situation
So far five deaths have been recorded in the country, which corresponds to a mortality rate of 2.7 per one million inhabitants.
Yesterday the director of the Clinic for Infectious Diseases, Fadil Cana, announced the fifth fatality: "It concerns a 73-year-old patient with a severe clinical picture and other comorbidities." The deceased lived in the Dolno Lisiche neighbourhood within the Aerodrom municipality, one of the Skopje municipalities where an outbreak of West Nile virus has been declared.
Authorities reported that 34 high‑risk localities in the Skopje region have been mapped and are being treated with field spraying against mosquitoes as part of measures to curb further spread.
Photo: Freepik
