BRATISLAVA, July 11 (Xinhua) -- A spokesperson with the Slovak Public Health Office confirmed on Wednesday that 161 measles cases have been reported in eastern Slovak districts of Michalovce and Sobrance.
"The number of measles cases in Michalovce and Sobrance districts stood at 161, of which 68 were confirmed by laboratory tests," confirmed the spokesperson Dasa Rackova.
Michalovce Hospital's department of infectious diseases head doctor Stefan Zamba also announced that more than 140 people have been admitted into hospital with 85 percent of them children under 18.
The doctor acknowledged that the outbreak had strained the hospital's capacity, saying "We ran into problems as early as this weekend in terms of capacity and processing such a high number of these patients."
He noted that the entire hospital staff has received inoculations and a strict ban on visits is in place for the whole facility.
A state of emergency was declared in Michalovce district in the Eastern Slovakia on Tuesday due to the outbreak.
