Geneva: Polio virus has been detected in a sewage sample in London. On Wednesday, the World Health Organization and British health officials gave this information and said that a type of poliovirus obtained from vaccines has been detected. Also said that the investigation is still going on in this matter. At the same time, an alert has been issued in Britain. Let us tell you that about two decades ago, the disease polio was eliminated from Britain. Since then, not a single case of polio has been reported in humans. The WHO said in a statement that ‘poliovirus type-2 (VDPV2)’ has been found in sewage samples in the British capital London.
According to the report of The New Indian Express, the WHO issued a statement saying, ‘It is important to note that the virus has been isolated only from environmental samples.’ Also stressed that ‘any related cases of recent paralysis are not detected. Any variant of the polio virus anywhere can prove to be a threat to children everywhere. Let us tell you that in recent years, there has been a massive campaign to eradicate polio on a global scale. Cases have decreased by 99 percent since 1988 when polio outbreaks occurred in 125 countries and 350,000 cases were reported worldwide.
Britain became polio-free in the year 2003
The dangerous version of the poliovirus now exists only in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In 2003, Britain was declared a polio-free country. Since then no new case has come up here. However, other dangerous diseases including polio are being monitored for a long time. Britain’s Health Protection Agency took samples of sewage water in the same sequence in the months of February and May. The virus has been detected during the investigation.
For those who are not vaccinated
According to the report, the oral polio vaccine (OPV) replicates in the intestine and can be easily transferred to others through fecal-contaminated water. This means that this virus will not harm a child who has been vaccinated, but it can have a bad effect in places where there is dirt and the number of vaccinations is less.
Polio eradication expert Kathleen O’Reilly warned on Wednesday that the finding in sewage samples from London suggests ‘there may be a local spread of the polio virus, most likely within individuals who have not been vaccinated against polio’ WHO said, ‘The most effective way to prevent further spread of this virus is to check vaccination history, especially for young children. WHO said polio vaccination coverage in London is around 87 percent.
