West Nile fever claims the country’s fifth victim, 21 patients hospitalized at Skopje Infectious Diseases Clinic

The number of victims of West Nile fever in the country has risen to five after another patient died, the director of the Infectious Diseases Clinic, Fadil Cana, announced.

The victim was a 73-year-old man from Skopje’s Novo Lisiçe neighborhood, who had been hospitalized at the clinic for 22 days.

When he was admitted, the patient was in extremely serious condition, with a severe clinical presentation and several underlying illnesses. He was treated in the Intensive Care Unit and received respiratory support, but the treatment failed to improve his condition.

Meanwhile, 21 patients are being treated at the Infectious Diseases Clinic. Infection with the neuroinvasive form of West Nile virus has been confirmed in 18 of them, while three other cases are considered suspected.

According to the clinic, new patients present and are admitted almost every day. For this reason, the number of hospitalized patients fluctuates between 20 and 21, while four patients remain in serious condition.