Poliovirus Type 3 eradicated
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Poliovirus Type 3 eradicated; Reports WHO Experts Panel

The World Health Organization (WHO) welcomed a “historic step” toward a polio-free world on Thursday as an expert panel certified that the 2 of 3 types of the crippling poliovirus has been eradicated globally.

This announcement by the Global Commission for the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication means that only wild poliovirus type 1 is still circulating after type II was declared eradicated in the year 2015 and type III this week.

Global polio infection cases have been cut by more than 99 % since 1988, but type 1 poliovirus is still endemic in Pakistan & Afghanistan, where polio has infected a total of 88 people this year. That is a resurgence from a record low global annual figure of 22 cases in the year 2017.

The eradication of wild poliovirus type III is a major milestone toward a polio-free world, but we cannot relax, said the WHO regional director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti.

Chief executive of the GAVI vaccine alliance, Seth Berkley, said it was “a tremendous victory in the fight against poliovirus infection.

Polio invades the nervous system and it causes irreversible paralysis within hours. It cannot be cured, but virus

infection can be prevented by vaccination & a dramatic reduction in cases worldwide in recent decades it has been due to intense national & regional immunization campaigns in babies and children.

In unvaccinated populations, however, polioviruses can re-emerge & spread swiftly. Cases of vaccine-derived polio can also occur in places where immunity is low & sanitation is poor, as vaccinated people can excrete the virus, putting the unvaccinated at risk.

Poliovirus Type 3 eradicated
A child receives a free polio vaccine during a government-led mass vaccination program in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines.

The Philippines last month said it was planning an emergency vaccination campaign after polio re-surfaced & caused the first 2 recorded polio cases there for 20 years.

Moeti urged governments to be vigilant: Countries must strengthen routine immunization to protect communities, ramp up routine surveillance so that it is possible to detect even the slightest risk of polio re-emerging, she said in a statement.

 

 

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Ria Roy completed her Post Grad degree at the Visvesvaraya Technological University. She has a great grounding in the skills, including technical, analytical and research skills. She is a motivated life science professional with experience of working in famous research institutes