Polio Update – Islamabad – September 4, 2024 Sewage samples collected from two new districts and 11 previously infected districts have tested positive for wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1), once again highlighting the threat of paralytic polio to children in communities across the country.   

According to the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health, environmental samples collected between 13 – 20 August from Attock, South Waziristan Lower, Tank, Peshawar, Abbottabad, Kambar, Karachi West, Karachi South, Karachi Malir, Karachi Keamari, Karachi East, Karachi Korangi and Dukki contained the virus.

This year, WPV1 has affected 16 children and spread to 64 districts in all four provinces as well as one district of Azad Jammu Kashmir. In view of the current poliovirus outbreak, it is crucial for children across Pakistan to be fully vaccinated for polio and routine immunization.

To keep children protected and build their immunity against poliovirus, the Polio Programme is launching a critical large-scale polio vaccination in 115 districts from September 9-13 to vaccinate 33 million children under the age of five.

Vaccinators will bring the oral polio vaccine to communities at their doorsteps. It is crucial for parents to ensure that they open their doors and vaccinate their children. 

Polio is a devastating incurable disease that can leave a child paralyzed for life. Repeated vaccination with the oral polio vaccine is the best line of defense against this disease along with routine vaccination offered free of cost by the Expanded Programme on Immunization at government-run health facilities.

Note:

Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by poliovirus mainly affecting children under the age of five years. It invades the nervous system and can cause paralysis or even death. While there is no cure for polio, vaccination is the most effective way to protect children from this crippling disease. Each time a child under the age of five is vaccinated, their protection against the virus is increased. Repeated immunisations have protected millions of children from polio, allowing almost all countries in the world to become polio-free. Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two remaining polio endemic countries globally.

For further information, please contact: Ms Hania Naeem, Communications Officer, NEOC,

Contact No:+923431101988

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