Two people suspected of having measles have been tested since last Thursday, but have been found to be negative for the measles virus.
The Institute for Public Health (IJZ) responded to "Vijesta" that 74 people from Bar and Podgorica who traveled to Sarajevo for a karate competition, as well as 26 students from the class of the sick boy, are under surveillance. They claim that family contacts, as well as the boy's teacher, are also under surveillance.
"From last Thursday to April 3, in addition to the child who was sick with measles, two more people suspected of having measles were tested, and the results were negative, that is, the presence of the virus was not proven in them," the IJZ replied to "Vijesta".
The institution explained that it was not possible to determine the vaccination status of the child's parents, while information was obtained from the parents of the sister that she had previously suffered from measles.
They also said that most of the 26 students in the class where the infected boy goes have received the MMR vaccine.
"According to the information from the epidemiological service of the Bar Health Center, six contacts were not vaccinated, two contacts received one dose, while 18 were fully vaccinated," said the IJZ.
The first case of measles in Montenegro was registered last week, and it was an eight-year-old boy who traveled to Sarajevo for a sports competition.
The IJZ announced at the time that the pediatric service in Bar is taking all necessary measures to check contacts and that everyone is under surveillance. They explained that surveillance does not imply self-isolation and that contacts can move, but that they have an obligation to report in case of symptoms.
The sick boy who was not vaccinated against measles is being treated at home, he is feeling well, and the director of the IJZ Dragan Laušević explained that due to the registered case of infection in Bar, a slight increase in vaccinations was recorded, so 72 children were vaccinated over the weekend.
100 people from Bar and Podgorica are under the supervision of the Institute for Public Health
The Directorate for Inspection Affairs (UIP) responded to "Vijesta" that after the confirmation of measles virus infection in a child, the health and sanitary inspector in Bar is in constant contact with the Hygiene and Epidemiological Service (HES) of the Bar Health Center. They explained that the HES of the Bar Health Center conducts increased epidemiological surveillance on the territory of that municipality, with a special emphasis on people who were in contact with the sick boy during the infectious period.
"The supervision carried out over the students of the elementary school 'Yugoslavia' Bar and the karate club 'Bar' did not establish the appearance of new suspicions of contracting measles," the UIP wrote in the reply.
"Vijesti" also asked whether and how many unvaccinated students of the Elementary School "Yugoslavia" in Bar (the decision of the health and sanitary inspection prevented them from attending classes until the end of the two maximum incubation periods, and the UIP said that in accordance with the epidemiological situation, they would undertake further legal measures prescribed by the Ministry of Health, based on the recommendations of the IJZ.
According to the IJZ guide, the definition of a measles epidemic is two or more laboratory-proven and temporally linked cases of measles that are epidemiologically or virologically related.
In the guide that was delivered to schools, it is written that in the event of the appearance of measles patients in educational institutions, all children who have not been vaccinated in accordance with the age and vaccination calendar, the decision of the health and sanitary inspection prevents them from attending kindergarten or classes in schools until the end of two of the maximum incubation period since the last case in that institution.
It is necessary to organize online classes for children in primary and secondary school who cannot physically attend classes for this reason.
"Children who are prevented from attending classes on this basis, if they undergo vaccination, it is possible to return to regular attendance," the guide says.
In the event of an epidemic, the Ministry of Health will announce the specified measures from the guide through an order, and the control of implementation is the responsibility of the UIP.
According to IJZ data, the countries of the region are recording smallpox epidemics.
Almost 27.000 children in Montenegro did not receive the first dose of the MMR vaccine, and around 20.000 children did not receive the second dose. IJZ data also show that only a fifth of children born in 2022 received the measles vaccine.
In the territory of Bar, out of a total of 3.190 registered children born from January 1, 2017 to August 31, 2022, who are of an age suitable for vaccination with the first dose of the MMR vaccine, a little more than half, i.e. 1.629 of them, were vaccinated, which is lower than the national average, which is about 64 percent.
Smallpox is among the most contagious diseases in existence and is spread through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes.
They are most common in children under the age of five. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose and a characteristic rash.
Most deaths are due to complications such as encephalitis, severe dehydration, serious breathing problems and pneumonia, and complications are most common in young children.
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