The rapid and deadly disease that took the life of 10-year-old Nenad Vasković has shocked Serbia and raised a burning question: Why isn’t meningococcal vaccination mandatory?
Nenad was a healthy boy from Belgrade, but the disease progressed at lightning speed. It all started on the night between April 21 and 22, when he developed a fever and chills. His mother, Tanja Vasković, said the symptoms initially looked like a common viral infection, but the situation drastically worsened within just four hours.
Nenad walked into the health center on his own but was soon transferred to the University Children’s Clinic in Tiršova. Two hours later, his mother found him unconscious, hooked up to all possible machines. Doctors told her it was a meningococcal infection that caused sepsis and organ failure. The mortality rate for this disease is extremely high, and early symptoms are often unrecognizable because they resemble a common cold or flu.
The Vasković family is now appealing to the government to introduce mandatory meningococcal vaccination for all children in Serbia. Currently, the vaccine is only available in pharmacies and costs around 15,000 dinars, and it is mandatory only for people traveling to exotic countries. In the European Union, all contacts of infected persons receive the vaccine, and Nenad’s family was advised to take preventive antibiotic therapy.
The meningococcal bacteria (Neisseria meningitidis) is transmitted by droplets and can cause meningitis and sepsis—diseases that progress extremely fast and can lead to death within hours. Although rare, this infection is extremely dangerous and requires urgent action.
Tanja Vasković emphasizes that it is difficult to recognize the disease in its early stages because symptoms resemble a common viral infection, and by the time skin changes appear, the disease is already in a critical phase. That’s why the family demands that vaccination become mandatory and free for all children in Serbia to prevent new tragedies.
This tragedy raises the question of how ready Serbia is to fight dangerous but preventable diseases. Will the government finally listen to the parents’ plea and introduce mandatory meningococcal vaccination? Or will we wait for another family to face a loss that could have been prevented?
If you have thoughts on this topic or have experienced something similar, share your views. Because if we don’t talk about it, who will?**
