Weight of multiple sclerosis in Kosovo: Over 40 new cases per half year

According to the definition of the prestigious American Clinic Mayo, this disease, also known as multiple sclerosis, harms the protective cover of nerves.

It can cause numbness, weakness, walking difficulties, first changes, and other symptoms that may eventually become daily obstacles to a normal life.

For bliss, it all began suddenly. He was only 27 years old, working as a waiter when in 2015 he received a diagnosis that would change his life forever.

“First, I had problems with my leg, pain and a sense of tribulation that did not pass”, he recalls in a story about Radio Free Europe.

Physical concerns were accompanied by deep uncertainty.

It took a lot of checks, visits to orthopedics, vascular doctors, and other specialists, but no one was able to find the cause of the pain that made him tired every day.

After many tests, one of the doctors sent him to a neurolog.

“Aty began the first doubts about multiplesis”, says Bekim: whose true identity is known for the REL's editing.

And when the diagnosis was confirmed, it felt like everything collapsed on him.

The diagnostic directory was very serious. I have also considered my marriage mate's divorce. I've been very, very bad”, he says, remembering the frightening beginnings of the disease.

After a difficult time, he was able to stabilize. For several years, therapy was felt well and the disease was under control. Until 2021, when it was vaccinated against COVID-19.

The moment I took the vaccine, I was never the same again. I forgot I had multiple sclerosis”, he says.

Today, bliss has serious difficulty walking without the help of another person.

While scientific studies have not found any direct link between vaccination and multiple sclerosis, personal experience has had profound consequences for it.

The only thing I haven't been able to do before the vaccine was run”, says today 37-year-old, who is unable to work and for many needs remains dependent on family.

Patients' interest and profile

Among the last years in Kosovo, 2023 was singled out as a year with more cases of multiple sclerosis ) a total of 76.

But concern is also high this year: Only in the first half of 2025 were 41 new cases recorded a figure approaching last year's total of 58.

According to health professionals, multiple sclerosis can occur at any age, but more often it is diagnosed among people between the ages of 20 and 40.

Women are also affected more frequently by this disease than by men.

The causes and symptoms of multiple sclerosis

The causes of multiple sclerosis are not known precisely.

The disease is considered to be linked to the immune system, which attacks its own tissues.

“ Radio Free Europe Brian Mufti, neurolog at the Neurology Clinic of the University Clinical Centre of Kosovo (QKUK).

He points out that the interactions of genes and environmental factors can increase the risk of the disease, as family history with it.

It says that symptoms vary from person to person because they depend on the severity of nerve damage.

The most classic “Symptoma is the exasperation of the sight's nerve or optic neuri. Then come motor or sensitive problems, loss of sensitivity or numbness in one part of the body, attention, urination problems, and so on, explains Mufti for Radio Free Europe, broadcasts Periscope.

Hundreds of patients in one center

In the clinic where he works, currently over 500 patients with multiple sclerosis receive therapy.

The types of drugs used are on the essential list, which means they are covered by the state and offered free of charge.

According to Mufti neurologists, therapy in Kosovo is comparable to that used in many developed European countries.

But the great challenge lies in approach.

All patients affected by this disease in Kosovo must head to KKUK to receive therapy, as it is not offered in regional hospitals.

This burdens the institution, especially when considered, the QKUK is the only center where other complex treatments, such as chemotherapy or neurological interventions, are offered.

Consequently, patients often face long lines of waiting or lack of doctors.

However, neurologist Mufti points out that it is essential that no symptom be overlooked even if it is constant fatigue or any strange feeling in the body.

According to him, early diagnosis significantly increases the likelihood of successful management of the disease.

While multiple sclerosis has no cure, proper treatment can help to speed up attacks, slow down the progress of the disease, and improve the quality of the patient's life.

According to the World Health Organization, over 1.8 million people worldwide have multiple sclerosis.

Although he today walks with the help of others, Bekim says that he has never lost his will. Rather, his experience has turned him into a call for consciousness and care.

“Use sports activities, walk, run, swim, because these things are very important”, the father of two ends up. /Periscope