49th polio case reported from Jaffarabad

New case detected in Jaffarabad, Balochistan, marking the district’s first confirmed infection

By M. Waqar Bhatti
November 15, 2024
A boy receives polio vaccine drops during an anti-polio campaign in a low-income neighborhood in Karachi, Pakistan, on April 9, 2018. — Reuters
A boy receives polio vaccine drops during an anti-polio campaign in a low-income neighborhood in Karachi, Pakistan, on April 9, 2018. — Reuters

ISLAMABAD: Polio has crippled another child in Pakistan, raising the total to 49 confirmed cases this year, health authorities announced on Thursday.

The new case was detected in Jaffarabad, Balochistan, marking the district’s first confirmed infection and highlighting the virus’s persistence across the country.

Genetic sequencing of the virus sample, conducted by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Islamabad, linked it to a WPV1 strain detected in Pishin, Balochistan, in April, indicating active transmission within the province. Currently, Balochistan is the most affected province, with 24 cases reported to date.