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Papua New Guinea has been certified polio-free since 2000, as well as the rest of the WHO Western Pacific Region.
The virus was suspected as the cause of lower limb weakness in a 6-year-old boy in Morobe province in April; in May, the diagnosis was confirmed.
The same strain of virus was detected in stool samples from two healthy children living in the community by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which confirmed the outbreak on Friday.
The total of three cases led to the declaration of an outbreak.
The WHO has also determined that the strain of poliovirus detected in children – vaccine-derived type 1 poliovirus circulates in the community.
Immunization coverage
There is no cure, and the disease can be deadly. The virus, which primarily affects young children, spreads from one person to another and can be transmitted through contaminated food and water.
The province, located on the north coast of Papua New Guinea, has more than half a million inhabitants.
The National Health Department of Papua New Guinea collaborated with WHO and other partners to launch an outbreak response, including a large-scale vaccination campaign and medical surveillance. increased to detect the disease and the presence of the virus.
The vaccination campaign, which targets children under the age of 15, has already vaccinated 845 children, according to the WHO. Neighboring provinces are taking similar measures, according to the agency.
In addition, the United Nations International Fund for Children's Relief and the WHO conducted door-to-door surveys, collected samples and followed contacts, in addition to analyzing samples stool from the community and the patient's family.
What is Type 1 poliovirus derived from the vaccine?
The oral polio vaccine contains a weakened form of poliovirus to activate the body's immune system.
When a child swallows drops of the vaccine, the weakened form of the virus breeds briefly in the intestines, where antibodies begin to grow against the actual virus. During the short time that this vaccine-virus lives in the intestines, it is excreted and can spread to other people before eventually disappearing if proper sanitation is not maintained.
By coming into contact with the virus in this way, children who have not been vaccinated can develop "passively" immunity in some cases, according to WHO.
This was the case for the young Morobe boy.
WHO recommends that travelers to polio affected areas be fully immunized against poliomyelitis. Residents (and visitors for more than four weeks) should receive an additional dose of oral polio vaccine or inactivated polio vaccine within four weeks to 12 months of travel.
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