North Macedonia said on Friday that two mpox cases were registered for the first time in the Balkan country.
Both patients are from the capital Skopje, and according to their statements they did not travel abroad.
“Two male persons born 1985 and 1981 are infected with monkeypox. They are not connected cases,” Institute for Public Health director Marija Andonovska told a press conference.
According to the Institute for Public Health the mpox cases were confirmed after three different laboratory tests.
Deputy Health Minister Jovica Andovski noted disease was not new and that there is a protocol for treatment.
Authorities said they contacted the relevant institutions after getting confirmation of the cases, and they will meet later Friday to discuss further steps.
Mpox is caused by a virus from the same family as smallpox, manifesting itself in a high fever and skin lesions.
First identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970, the disease had generally been confined to a dozen African countries before spreading more widely from 2022.
The WHO declared its highest level of alert in 2024.
© 2025 AFP
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North Macedonia reports first cases of mpox (2025, May 23)
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