Islamabad, May 30: In more worrying news for Pakistan, poliovirus has been found in five more sewage samples in the country, days after the country reported its third case this year.
The National Polio Testing Laboratory has released a report on sewage samples from five districts, confirming the presence of poliovirus, according to ARY News.
Poliomyelitis has been eradicated in all countries except Afghanistan and Pakistan.
According to sources, the virus was found in sewage samples from Karachi, Quetta and Kohat. This year, 153 out of 39 districts’ sewage samples have tested positive for poliovirus.
The sampling for polio testing was conducted from May 9 to 15 in 5 districts. Karachi East’s Rashid Minhas Road and Machhar Colony sewage samples tested positive for poliovirus, sources said.
Sources added that this year, 19 out of Karachi East’s sewage samples and 5 out of Karachi Central’s sewage samples have tested positive. The poliovirus found in Karachi’s sewage is genetically linked to the local strain.
Quetta’s Tausabad area sewage sample also tested positive, with 19 out of Quetta’s sewage samples testing positive this year. The poliovirus found in Quetta’s sewage is genetically linked to the Chamman strain, sources said.
According to sources, Kohat’s Faqirabad area sewage sample tested positive for poliovirus, with this being the fourth time this year that poliovirus has been detected in Kohat’s sewage. The poliovirus found in Kohat’s sewage is genetically linked to the Peshawar strain.
It is pertinent to mention here that the third polio case of 2024 was reported in Pakistan as a minor girl from Kila Abdullah was diagnosed with the virus.
The girl, from Balochistan’s Kila Abdullah, showed symptoms of paralysis on April 20. The health ministry said that genetic testing of the affected girl’s samples is still underway.
All of the three cases reported this year are from Balochistan.
