Lilongwe (Malawi) : The health authorities in African country Malawi have declared outbreak of wild Polio virus Type-1, imported all the way from Pakistan.
In the wake of the scary development, the World Health Organization (WHO) said it has stepped in to help Malawi’s authorities.
Africa was declared free of indigenous wild polio in August 2020 after eliminating all forms of wild polio from the region.
Recently, a case was detected in a young child in Malawi’s capital Lilongwe.
This is the first case of wild poliovirus in Africa in more than five years, according to the local health officials.
Laboratory analysis shows that the strain is linked to the one that has been circulating in Sindh Province in Pakistan and was clearly imported from there.
“Laboratory analysis shows that the #polio strain detected in #Malawi is linked to one that has been circulating in Pakistan. As long as polio is circulating somewhere, it poses a risk everywhere. We need all parties to recommit to #EndPolio,” WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tweeted.
Polio remains endemic in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
“As long as wild polio exists anywhere in the world all countries remain at risk of importation of the virus,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti WHO Regional Director for Africa.
“Following the detection of wild polio in Malawi, we’re taking urgent measures to forestall its potential spread,” Moeti said.
“Thanks to a high level of polio surveillance in the continent and the capacity to quickly detect the virus, we can swiftly launch a rapid response and protect children from the debilitating impact of this disease,” Moeti added.
WHO is supporting the Malawi health authorities in carrying out a risk assessment and outbreak response, including supplemental immunization.
Surveillance of the disease is also being ramped up in neighbouring countries.
The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) Rapid Response Team, based at the WHO Regional Office in Africa, is deploying a team to Malawi to support coordination, surveillance, data management, communications, and operations.
Partners organizations will also send teams to support emergency operations and innovative vaccination campaign solutions.
“The last case of wild polio virus in Africa was identified in northern Nigeria in 2016 and globally there were only five cases in 2021. Any case of wild polio virus is a significant event and we will mobilize all resources to support the country’s response,” said Dr Modjirom Ndoutabe, Polio Coordinator in the WHO Regional Office for Africa.
Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus.
It invades the nervous system and can cause total paralysis within hours.
The virus is transmitted from person-to-person mainly through the faecal-oral route or, less frequently, through contaminated water or food, and multiplies in the intestine.
While there is no cure for polio, the disease can be prevented through administration of a simple and effective vaccine.
