Polio this week as of 13 December 2017
New on polioeradication.org: Technical advisory groups met last week to review progress made to eradicate polio in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and advise on the way forward to further improve the quality of programme implementation during the low transmission season.
In Pakistan, the polio eradication programme and the routine immunization programme are working hand in hand to increase vaccination coverage in urban areas.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are implementing sub-national rounds during the second half of December; the rounds are synchronized to ensure that all the high risk mobile populations are efficiently reached with polio vaccine.
Summary of newly-reported viruses this week: One new case of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) reported in Sindh province, Pakistan. This follows the advance notification of the case last week.
Afghanistan: Two new WPV1 positive environmental samples reported, both collected from Nangarhar province.
Pakistan: Two new WPV1 positive environmental samples reported, one from Sindh province, and one from Balochistan province. Syria: Four new circulating vaccine derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) cases reported, all from Deir Ez-Zor governorate.
An advance notification has been received of one new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) case in Balochistan province, Pakistan. The case will be officially reflected in next week’s global data reporting.
See country-specific sections for further details.
Afghanistan
Two new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) positive environmental samples were reported this week, both collected from Jalalabad district in Nangarhar province on 25 November.
No new cases of WPV1 have been reported. The total number of officially reported WPV1 cases in Afghanistan in 2017 remains eleven.
The next round of sub-national immunization days are planned for the second half of December 2017.
Read the latest polio update from Afghanistan to see information on cases, surveillance and vaccination campaigns.
Pakistan
One new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) case was officially reported this week in Karachi Gadap district, Sindh province, with onset 9 November. This follows advance notification of the case in last week’s data reporting.
The total number of officially reported WPV1 cases in Pakistan in 2017 is now six.
An advance notification has been received of one new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) case in Balochistan province. The case will be officially reflected in next week’s global data reporting.
Field investigations are continuing into the newly reported polio case and a response is being planned.
Two new WPV1 positive environmental samples were reported this week, one collected from Karachi Landhi district in Sindh province on 16 November, and one collected from Loralai district, in Balochistan province on 17 November.
The next round of sub-national immunization days are planned for the second half of December 2017.
Read the latest polio update from Pakistan to see information on cases, surveillance and vaccination campaigns.
Nigeria
No new cases of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) were reported in the past week. The total number of WPV1 cases for 2016 remains four and no cases have been reported in 2017. The most recent case had onset of paralysis on 21 August 2016 in Monguno Local Government Area,
Borno.
Nigeria continues to implement an emergency response to the detected WPV1 strain and circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) strains affecting the country (last detected in 2016).
The next round of sub-national immunization days are planned for late January.
Detection of polio cases in Nigeria underscores the risk posed by lowlevel undetected transmission. As part of the emergency response subnational surveillance continues to be strengthened.
Lake Chad Basin
The detection of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) (Borno state, Nigeria in 2016) and circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) (Borno and Sokoto states in 2016) continue to pose a risk to the neighbouring countries of the Lake Chad basin.
Emergency outbreak response efforts continue across the Lake Chad basin, together with activities to fill subnational surveillance gaps across the region.
These activities include efforts to vaccinate children at markets, in internally displaced persons camps, and at international borders.
Phase 3 of outbreak response is going ahead in January, taking into account many of the recommendations made at the recent Outbreak Response Assessment and Technical Advisory Group meetings. The objective is to maintain and improve the multi-national, regional outbreak response across the Lake Chad region.
During the Niger bOPV campaign in November, children in 29 health districts were vaccinated, including in Diffa and Zinder provinces, near the border with Nigeria. The campaign in Niger strengthened the immunity of over three million children under 5 years of age against polio.
Vaccinators additionally used the polio infrastructure to provide Vitamin A and deworming tablets.
Read the latest polio update from the Lake Chad Basin to see information on surveillance and vaccination campaigns.
Central Africa
No new cases of type 2 circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus (cVDPV2) were reported this week in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The total number of cVDPV2 cases this year is ten.
Most cases this year are linked to an outbreak in Haut Lomami province, where the onset of paralysis of the most recent case was 27 July.
A separate outbreak occurred in Maniema province earlier this year, consisting of two cases with onset of paralysis on 26 March and 18
April, with an additional isolate detected in a healthy individual with sample collection on 2 May.
Outbreak response continues to take place across the country, including use of monovalent oral polio vaccine type 2 (mOPV2) in line with internationally-agreed outbreak response protocols.
Surveillance and immunization activities continue to be strengthened in neighbouring countries.
Read the latest polio update from the DRC to see information on surveillance and vaccination campaigns.
The Middle East
Four new cases of type 2 circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus (cVDPV2) were reported this week, three from Mayadeen district, and one from Boukamal district, in Deir Ez-Zor governorate. The cases had onset on 4 August, 5 September, 8 September, and 21 September. The most recent case (by date of onset) is now 21 September 2017 in Boukamal district.
The total number of confirmed cVDPV2 cases is now 74.
Global Polio Eradication Initiative partners continue to support the Syrian Ministry of Health with planning for the second phase of the outbreak response.
Local authorities in Raqqa have agreed to carry out inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) vaccination in Ein Esa camp, which was missed in earlier IPV vaccination activities.
A new environmental surveillance laboratory has been successfully established in Damascus this week. WHO led the training of surveillance officers and staff from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Water Resources.
Read the latest polio update from Syria to see information on cases, surveillance and vaccination campaigns.