Poliovirus attacks two more children

Islamabad: Pakistan’s polio emergency is far from over. After the confirmation of two polio cases on October 17, another two cases were notified on Thursday—this time, from Bajour tribal district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)—taking the total number of cases to 8 so far this year.

“The virus detected from sewerage samples in Bajour during the last few months has infected a five-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy. Poliovirus was isolated from the stool samples of both children presenting with atypical symptoms of facial palsy and slight weakness; multiple doses of Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) had boosted their immunity,” states a press release issued by the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) for Polio Eradication here on Thursday.

Of the 8 cases reported so far in 2018, three are from Dukki district in Balochistan; one each from Karachi, Charsadda district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Khyber tribal district of KP; and two from Bajour. Five of these children had been vaccinated multiple times, protecting them from lifelong paralysis; this included the two most recent cases from Bajour. However, the three child victims from Dukki were severely under-immunized and as such, while an 18-month old boy died due to paralysis of the breathing muscles, the remaining two will have to live with lifelong paralysis.

According to the Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Polio Eradication Babar Bin Atta, “the virus is fighting for its survival now and is trying to find un-vaccinated or under-vaccinated children all the time. To eradicate polio, we will need to immunize every child, so that the virus has nowhere to go.” Pakistan will hold its next door-to-door polio vaccination campaign in selected districts from November 12-15, followed by a countrywide campaign from December 10-13.

Pakistan may have achieved tremendous progress in its fight against polio, but as stated by Dr. Rana Muhammad Safdar, National Coordinator for Polio Eradication, “the identification of new cases is yet another reminder that as long as poliovirus exists anywhere in the country, no child is safe from being infected.”

Wild poliovirus cases have declined from 20,000 per year in the early 1990’s to 8 last year. This is doubtlessly a significant decline, but the government must not lose sight of the fact that even 8 cases have the potential to reverse the achievements of the past. It is worrying for Pakistan to be bracketed among the three last countries of the world, alongside Afghanistan and Nigeria, with continuing poliovirus circulation.