ISLAMABAD: A fresh polio case has been detected in Kohat, KP. According to reports, this would raise the total number of polio cases reported in Pakistan to 23 for the year 2024. The newborn victim is a 10-month-old child whose case left the child paralyzed, making him the second case in KP for this year.
Of the total 23 polio cases reported in the country,
Balochistan has topped the list with 15 cases, followed by Sindh with four cases, while Punjab and Islamabad have reported one case each. The increase in polio cases sounds alarm at a time when the country continues to be in the grip of continuous nationwide vaccination campaigns. This goes to show that for long the poliovirus continued to be a threat to children across Pakistan.
The NIH Regional Reference Laboratory
For Polio Eradication noted the significance of the finding. But health specialists say that immunity gap is widening, and cases are likely to keep rising in the near future. In fact, according to one polio expert who requested anonymity, the current situation in this scenario is one major test for national leadership, citing cases of further outbreaks caused by lapses in vaccination campaigns.
“There was a 15-month period of no polio cases due to the intense efforts of 2020-21,” said the expert. “But a lack of vigilance and emerging challenges during 2021-22 led to outbreaks in southern KP. That situation, left unchecked, has now spread to the rest of the country, leading to the current surge.”
Among other statements, the expert added that environmental surveillance accounts for an identification of 336 positive samples of poliovirus in sewage this year alone, pointing towards the persistent presence of the virus.
Immunity Gaps and Media Responsibility
The polio expert highlighted the role of the media in creating awareness on the ongoing polio threat. “The public has to feel that it is very much real. Parents have a religious and social responsibility to get their children vaccinated against this preventable disease,” he said.
Government and Polio Campaigns
Ayesha Raza Farooq is the Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication. She stressed that repeated efforts were required for every child. “Polio is a devastating disease that destroys children’s futures. The only thing that guards them is multiple doses of oral polio vaccine and routine immunization.”.
As vaccination campaigns continue,
It is facing challenges in retaining sustained coverage due to displacement of the population, insecurity, and mistrust in the community. According to NEOC Coordinator Muhammad Anwarul Haq, the government is committed to identifying gaps in vaccination coverage. “We must close these immunity gaps and unite as a nation to defeat polio.”.
Spread of poliovirus in Kohat during this year with four positive environmental samples and continued detection of the virus in the sewage of Peshawar points to the fact that the virus still seriously threatens children in KP and elsewhere.
Pakistan continues to battle polio, and the latest rising cases send a sobering reminder that vaccine coverage must continue unabated. Health experts and government officials thus appeal to parents to have all their children immunized, stating that there was no letting down in efforts to fill immunity gaps and rid the country of the virus.