Pakistan Reports New WPV1 Case
Faizan Hashmi Published January 08, 2025 | 06:00 PM
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jan, 2025) The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) has confirmed the detection of the new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) case from the country.
The lab confirmed a case from Tank, making it the 5th case from the district in 2024.
Pakistan is responding to the resurgence of WPV1, with 69 cases reported so far in 2024. Of these, 27 are from Balochistan, 21 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 19 from Sindh, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.
Polio is a paralyzing disease that has no cure. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five is essential to provide children high immunity against this terrible disease.
The Pakistan Polio Program conducts multiple mass vaccination drives in a year, bringing the vaccine to children at their doorsteps, while the Expanded Programme on Immunization provides vaccinations against 12 childhood disease free of charge at health facilities.
It is crucial for parents to ensure vaccination for all their children under the age of five to keep them protected.
The year’s first Polio vaccination campaign is scheduled to be conducted nationwide from February 3-9, 2025.
To keep children safe, it is critical for parents to welcome vaccinators among them and bring their children forward for vaccination.
