New Delhi: This is the first case of wild polio in three decades in Mozambique. This is the first case of this kind of childhood disease in Mozambique since 1992 after an outbreak in Malawi earlier this year and the second case of wild poliovirus import in South Africa this year. The World Health Organization’s regional director for Africa, Dr. According to Matshidiso Moeti, the discovery of the new case was “very worrying” and showed “how dangerous the virus is and how fast it can spread”.Also read – Afghanistan to hold ‘first polio inoculation drive’ from November 8 after Taliban takeover
Africa was declared indigenous wild polio free in 2020. Recent cases of poliovirus type 1, however, will not affect the certification as it appears to be an imported strain, the WHO said. According to The Guardian, polio eradication is one of the great global health success stories and the wild poliovirus is now endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Also read – BTS Jimin donates heavily to help polio patients, wins Army hearts
The case in Mozambique was identified in the northeastern province of Tate, when an infected child began to have paralysis in late March. Genomic sequencing analysis shows that the newly confirmed case was linked to tensions in Pakistan in 2019, similar to the case reported in Malawi earlier this year, The Guardian reports. Also read – Polio Vaccine Drive 2021 to start in India: Check out the state wise scheme here
What is polio?
Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a highly contagious disease, transmitted primarily by oral contamination through feces. U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), because the virus resides in the feces of an infected person, it can spread to other infected people when they do not wash their hands properly after defecation. People can also become infected if they drink water or eat food contaminated with infected feces.
The virus can cause paralysis and disability in children, and is sometimes fatal. There is no cure, but vaccination has brought the world closer to eradicating this wild form of the disease.
The virus multiplies in the gut, from where it invades the nervous system and can cause paralysis. Once that is done, the patient becomes disabled for life because there is no cure for the pain.
Features of Poli0
According to CDS, most people who are infected with the poliovirus (about 72 out of 100) show no visible symptoms. 1 in 4 people with poliovirus infection (or 25 out of 100) will have flu-like symptoms which may include sore throat, fever, fatigue, nausea, headache and abdominal pain. These symptoms usually last for 2 to 5 days, and then go away on their own.
A small proportion of people with a poliovirus infection (less than one in 100 or 1-5 in 1000) will develop other, more severe symptoms affecting the brain and spinal cord:
- Peresthesia (feeling of pins and needles in the legs)
- Meningitis (infection of the spinal cord and / or cerebral cortex) occurs in 1 in 25 people with poliovirus infection.
- Paralysis (not being able to move body parts) or weakness in the arms, legs or both, occurs in about 1 in 200 people with poliovirus infection.
Paralysis is the most serious symptom associated with polio as it can lead to permanent disability and death. Poliovirus infections kill 2 to 10 out of 100 paralyzed people, as the virus affects the muscles that help them breathe.
Children who appear to be recovering well may also develop muscle soreness, weakness, or paralysis as adults after 15 to 40 years. It is called post polio syndrome.
Transmission
Poliovirus is highly contagious and is spread by person-to-person contact. It lives in the throat and intestines of an infected person. It enters the body through the mouth and is spread by contact with drops from the feces (roots) of an infected person or the sneeze or cough of an infected person (less common).
An infected person can spread the virus to others for up to 2 weeks before symptoms appear. The virus can stay in the feces of an infected person for several weeks. It can contaminate food and water in an unsanitary condition. People who do not have symptoms can still pass the virus to others and make them sick.
Prevention and treatment
The polio vaccine protects children’s bodies by preparing them to fight the poliovirus. Almost all children (99 out of 100 to 100) who receive all the recommended doses of inactivated polio vaccine will be protected from polio. There are two types of vaccines that can prevent polio:
- The inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) is given as an injection in the leg or arm depending on the age of the patient. Only IPV has been used in the United States since 2000.
- Oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) is still used worldwide.
Polio cases in India
India was declared polio free in January 2014, with zero cases reported for three years. The last case of wild poliovirus in the country was found on January 13, 2011. The WHO removed India from the list of countries with active domestic wild poliovirus transmission on February 24, 2012.
