The first case report of polio in Pakistan after 15 months

The first case of wild polio virus came to light in Pakistan after 15 months from North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.   Polio c...

The first case of wild polio virus came to light in Pakistan after 15 months from North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

 

Polio case emerges in Pakistan 15 months later - Photo / AFP

According to a statement issued by the National Health Emergency Operations Center (NEOC), a wild polio case was reported in North Waziristan, the third case reported globally this year.

 

Read more: Record of no polio case reported for 12 months for the first time in Pakistan

The statement said that Wild Polio Virus Type One (WPV1) case was confirmed in North Waziristan on April 22, which was confirmed on April 9 in the laboratory of National Institute of Health Islamabad with disability.

"The Polio Laboratory confirmed the receipt of a positive environmental sample from Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on April 15. The two viruses are related to each other," it said.

It may be recalled that on January 27 this year, a year had passed since no polio cases were reported in the country. Earlier, in 2021, only cases were reported from Balochistan but no case was reported from other provinces.

Secretary National Health Services Amir Ashraf said that this is a tragedy for children and families and it is also unfortunate that efforts are being made to eradicate polio in Pakistan and around the world.

"We are depressed but we will continue our efforts," he said.

He said that polio cases have been reported in the southern part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where the polio virus was found in the environment last year and an emergency plan was being worked out there.

Read also: UNICEF hopes to eradicate polio in Pakistan

Amir Ashraf said that teams from National and Provincial Polio Emergency Operations Centers have been deployed to investigate the recent case while an emergency campaign has been launched in Pakistan to prevent further spread of wild polio virus.

The South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) was declared a polio-endangered area where the wild polio virus was identified in environmental samples in the last quarter of 2021, the NOC said in a statement.

He said that a positive environmental pattern of wild polio virus was detected in Dera Ismail Khan and Bannu division.

Dr. Shehzad Baig, Coordinator, NEOC, said that this confirms the program's concerns about the virus in South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He said that the government and global polio partners have already launched an emergency plan to tackle this challenge in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The statement said that the wild polio virus type two and three has been eradicated worldwide while WPV1 is now at its lowest level in history.

Two more cases were reported in Afghanistan and Malawi this year, the agency said.

The government is committed to eradicating polio, says Federal Minister of Health

Federal Minister for Health Abdul Qadir Patel while presiding over the high level meeting said that the government is committed to eradicate polio and will use all facilities for the better health of children.

"Eradication of polio is our religious and moral duty. We must redouble our efforts to eradicate polio. The media, civil society, scholars and parents must play a key role in eradicating polio," he said. We have to work with an effective and integrated strategy to eliminate it.

Read more: The story of the polio vaccine: what it does that saves 3 million lives each year

Dr. Shehzad Baig, Coordinator Pakistan Polio Program, gave a detailed briefing to Federal Minister for Health Abdul Qadir Patel about the polio program and said that there has been a historic decline in polio cases.

"Our struggle will continue till polio is completely eradicated," he said, adding that with the full support of the government, the cooperation of partners, provincial governments and security and law enforcement agencies, there has been a historic reduction in cases.

On the occasion, the Federal Minister for Health said that no negligence would be tolerated in the complete eradication of polio from the country.

The Health Minister lauded the role of polio front line workers and said that they were our heroes and assured full support from the federal government.