US joins Congo and Yemen on WHO watch list for countries where polio spreads

The United States has joined the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yemen and Somalia on the waiting list of countries where polio has spread.

Health chiefs said on Tuesday that America met the criteria for the list because detection of the virus in sewers showed “continuing transmission”.

New York has already declared a state of emergency for the virus, saying it can’t afford to “roll the dice” after it was discovered in state sewers and a man was paralyzed. It has not yet been detected in any other state.

The list, administered by the World Health Organization, includes 21 countries that have detected polio in the past year, mostly in Africa. Britain and Israel also joined this year after detecting the virus in sewers.

Polio is a serious concern because it can cause infections of the brain or spinal cord and, in rare cases, cause paralysis. Health officials are asking all Americans to stay up to date on polio vaccines, which scientific studies have shown are safe and at least 99% effective against the disease.

The United States has been added to the WHO’s list of countries where the “vaccine-borne” polio virus is circulating.

This means that there is continued evidence of contamination in these countries from both human cases and detection in wastewater.

Viruses that spread across nations also need to be vaccinated, meaning that a weakened live virus used in vaccines begins to infect others.

The only oral polio vaccine uses live attenuated virus, which was discontinued by the United States in 2000 to replace it with the inactive polio vaccine. But other countries, including Pakistan and Nigeria, continue to shoot.

Today’s announcement raises questions about whether the United States should retain the polio-eradication status it achieved more than forty years ago.

However, there are currently no wild species circulating in the country. Only Afghanistan and Pakistan continue to detect wild strains of the virus.

This year, US health officials were warned of the outbreak after they detected polio in a paralyzed Hasidic man in Rockland County, New York.

It has since been found in the wastewater of five counties in the state. These are: Orange, Sullivan, Nassau, New York City and Rockland.

The cases have been linked through genetic testing to those discovered this year in London and Jerusalem.

In response, the state urged residents to get vaccinated and declared a state of emergency last week.

Health Commissioner spot. Mary Bassett said at the time, “We can’t roll the dice in polio. If you or your child are not vaccinated or their vaccines are out of date, the risk of stroke is real. I urge New Yorkers not to take risks.

Most people infected with polio have no symptoms of the virus.

But about one in 20 patients will suffer from infections of the brain or spinal cord, which in rare cases can even lead to a stroke.

There is no cure for the disease, health officials instead urge everyone to get vaccinated as the best line of defense.

Children in the United States are routinely offered the three-step polio vaccine, with the first injection at two months of age and the last injection at 18 months of age.

A booster is also offered for ages four to six to provide protection.

Studies show that jab is 99% effective in preventing polio infection.

But in recent years and amid the Covid disruption, the United States has lagged behind in vaccinating youth against the disease.