Rat-borne diseases cause crisis in Sarajevo

In Sarajevo it is, once again, the Year of the Rat.

Social media posts from residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina's capital have shown an abundance of rodents swimming in the Miljacka river which flows through the centre of the city.

Sarajevans long accustomed to poor public services have also posted photos of overflowing rubbish containers and illegal dumping – along with complaints that the authorities have failed to clear away dead animals from public areas including children's playgrounds.

It all makes for a wonderful environment for rats to thrive. For humans, however, the picture is rather less rosy.

Health experts blame a failure to control Sarajevo's rodent population for an alarming rise in the number of cases of rat-borne diseases.

In just one 24 hour period this week, the country's largest hospital reported a dozen cases of leptospirosis. That follows a steady stream of other infections earlier in the month.

One of the disease's nicknames, rat fever, reflects its key vector of infection. It generally spreads to humans through water or soil contaminated with rodent urine or faeces.

Symptoms can range from headaches and muscle pain to bleeding on the lungs. The acute form of the illness, Weil's disease, can cause jaundice and even kidney failure.

The local authorities in Sarajevo have declared an epidemic, allowing the imposition of emergency measures, including a long overdue clean-up.

Extra municipal workers armed with disinfectant sprays have been deployed to carry out an urban "spring clean" in public areas across the city, while additional rubbish collections are being arranged. Schools have been directed to clean their playgrounds, mow any grass areas and check their basements for rats.

The current all-action approach is a stark contrast to the laissez-faire situation of the past two years, during which there were no pest control measures in Sarajevo at all. Officials blame a botched tender process for extermination and sanitation work, which has allowed the city to go to the rats – and, for that matter, the dogs, as packs of strays are also a common sight around the capital.

Sarajevo Canton Health Minister Enis Hasanovic described the situation as "not a health crisis, but a communal crisis", due to local authorities failing to fulfil essential municipal hygiene requirements.

But a former director of the Sarajevo's University Clinical Centre, Sebija Izetbegović, believes the health situation could deteriorate further. Now a member of Sarajevo Canton Assembly, she points out that "well-fed rats" are currently so numerous in the city that "we can also expect hantavirus".

In one respect at least, Sarajevo has been lucky. Left untreated, leptospirosis can be deadly, with a mortality rate of more than 50% for people who suffer from severe bleeding of the lungs.

But so far none of the cases reported in the current epidemic have been serious.