In Kosovo, about 100,000 infected annually by infectious diseases

The National Institute of Public Health collects the disease data.

With infectious diseases, according to these data, over a year in Kosovo some 100,000 people are infected.

According to the Kosovo Statistics Agency, 68 people have lost their lives from infectious diseases in 2017, which is also the last year this institution has collected these statistics.

Despite this, officials say that during the coronary pandemic, they have been able to report the number of infected in the World Health Organization and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.

Lul Raka, microbiologist at the National Institute of Public Health in Kosovo, says this has been due to co-operation with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

Over the past year, we have been in close co-operation with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for implementation of the latest recommendations from this European Union agency. COVID-19's pandemic [which causes the Coronavirus] has interrupted this activity that we have implemented together and have been on the way to review the legal framework and active monitoring of infectious diseases”, Raka says.

Infectologist Sali Ahmeti tells Radio Free Europe that some infectious diseases in Kosovo are autochthonic, but that there are also imported.

It cites malaria and the Western Nile virus as diseases that have reached late in Kosovo and that have caused death.

Infectious diseases affecting a number of the population each year are bleeding fevers of congo, tularemia, tuberculosis, seasonal flues, measles, hepatitis B and C.

“At the Infectious Clinic of the University Clinical Centre of Kosovo, we face various diseases from the most common to the rarest or most unusual. Kosovo is known as a wandering country for some infectious diseases, with a high prevalence and incidentity, including mortality. Among them are bleeding fevers ʹcongo crimes, caused by the stinging of the ticks”, Ahmeti explains.

“also, measles is one of many serious diseases and many infectious diseases that usually affect unextended children”, he says.

The vaccine has caused certain infectious diseases in Kosovo to weaken but also to disappear, such as child paralysis and measles in vaccinated children.

According to leaders of the National Institute of Public Health, Kosovo ranks among the most successful states in the world in terms of immunization.

The vaccine is organised by the Enhanced Immunification Programme, under the National Institute of Public Health, and has over 95 percent coverage.

Microbiologist Lull Raka says monitoring infectious diseases is one of the key points in their prevention and control.

“in the last decade has had a lot of problems with the functioning of the health information system and we don't have accurate data. Until I The KSHPK is responsible for epidemiological oversight”, he says.

According to Rakes, for monitoring and controlling infectious diseases are working on European Union recommendations, but for a time this co-operation has been interrupted due to pandemic with COVID-19.