15 new cases of pertussis – whooping cough in popular terms, were reported in the period from May 3 to 9, of which six people were hospitalized. In terms of geographical distribution, most of the cases were reported within the epidemic in Skopje – 14, and one case was also reported from Kriva Palanka. The age of the patients ranges from one month to 62 years, and the largest number of cases are from the age group up to four years, the Institute of Public Health (IHZ) informs in the latest report, published today.

As of May 9, a total of 553 cases of whooping cough were registered in the country, with an incidence of 30.1/100,000 inhabitants. This represents a severalfold increase in the number of patients compared to the past five-year period – from 2019 to 2023, when a total of 10 cases were registered.

IJZ reminds that there are two ongoing epidemics, reported in the territory of Skopje and Kumanovo.

From January 18 to May 9, a total of 45,715 doses of vaccine containing a whooping cough component were administered.