New Strain Of Polio Found: Pakistani Health Officials Prompted Immediate Immunization

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A new strain of polio virus has been discovered in sewage samples. Health officials have been alarming the public and conducted a five-day polio immunization campaign in the southwestern city of Quetta for children under five years old.

The rare type 2 strain of polio virus found in the sewage prompted local health officials for immediate action to immunize the locals specifically children under 5 years. Samples are then taken by the World Health Organization in November for further analysis.

Syed Faisal Ahmed, coordinator of the local Emergency Coordination Center, said, "The religious leaders were asking the people to give their children anti-polio drops in their sermons in the mosques in rural areas of Baluchistan." Also, local officials said to Reuters that they had recruited Muslim clerics to promote immunizations to 400,000 children after past programs were met with resistance and violence with extremists.

Pakistan recorded to have 19 cases of polio last year and only 1 recorded came from Baluchistan province, of which Quetta is the capital.

However, there is still no cases of Type 2 strain of polio virus compared to Type 1 reported in Quetta, but as a precaution, vaccination campaign has been implemented.

Ahmed also explain, "We have achieve a major goals in combating polio disease, but still we have to strive more to declare Pakistan a polio-free country."

Per WHO, Poliomyelitis or commonly known as polio, is a highly infectious viral disease which mainly affects young children. The mode of transmission of the virus is through the fecal-oral route or less frequently by contaminated food. The virus multiplies in the intestines and eventually evade the nervous system and cause paralysis to the victim.

Symptoms includes fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck and pain in the limbs. The disease may cause paralysis but only a small portion of the cases, and which often permanent. Sadly, there is no cure for polio has ever been discovered yet, only prevention through immunization are still available.