The sister of the boy from Novi Pazar also has symptoms of measles, the doctor discovers the condition in a potential focus

The first case of measles in Novi Pazar was registered in a four-year-old child from this city, who was not vaccinated. The child was first hospitalized in the Novi Pazar hospital, and then transferred to Belgrade.

Then came the confirmation that it was measles.

– The child is currently in a stable condition and that is what is most important. What worries us is that numerous contacts were made in the place where he lives, in the hospital. The younger, three-year-old sister, who was also not vaccinated, developed a fever. It is up to us to try to find all the contacts in the coming period and monitor the situation in cooperation with the pediatricians – he told RINU prim. Dr. Šefadil Spahić, director of the Institute for Public Health in Novi Pazar.

“We don’t have collective immunity”

He pointed out that there is no reason to panic, because it is a sporadic case of measles in Novi Pazar, and he referred to the much more difficult situation that existed six or seven years ago.

– We had two epidemics in 2017 and 2018, with more than 400 cases of infection and two deaths. What can be a cause for concern is that the vaccination rate is below 60 percent, while it should be around 90 percent. We do not have collective immunity – emphasized Dr. Spahić.

He appeals to all parents to monitor the health status of their children and not to ignore symptoms such as a high temperature exceeding 39 degrees.