Polio

U.K. health authorities have said they are urgently investigating a rare polio virus outbreak in sewage samples in London.

"In populations with low vaccine uptake it is possible that the live polio vaccine can spread from one person to another. It is common practice in the U.K. for children to receive an inactivated polio vaccine as part of their routine vaccination program; with three shots given before the age of one and another shot given at ages three and 14. Polio is a rare virus that can occasionally cause serious illness, such as paralysis, in people who are not fully vaccinated. On occasion, it can attack muscles used for breathing, which can be fatal. Generally, those who do become infected with polio display no symptoms, though some can develop a flu-like illness up to three weeks later. A number of waste samples from the Beckton sewage treatment works in Newham, east London tested positive for vaccine-derived polio virus between February and May, the U.K. Health Security Agency said Wednesday.

News originally published on the Global Polio Eradication Initiative website. The Global Polio Laboratory Network (GPLN) has confirmed the isolation of type ...

It is important that all countries, in particular those with a high volume of travel and contact with polio-affected countries and areas, strengthen surveillance in order to rapidly detect any new virus importation and to facilitate a rapid response. Any form of poliovirus anywhere is a threat to children everywhere. It is important to note that the virus has been isolated from environmental samples only – no associated cases of paralysis have been detected.

Scientists in Britain have detected multiple versions of the virus in wastewater. Officials say the risk to the public is extremely low and urge people to ...

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Polio has been detected in sewage samples in the British capital — the first sign since the 1980s that the virus could be spreading in the country, ...

UKHSA said it usually finds between one and three samples of poliovirus in sewage annually, but they have previously been one-offs. Polio, spread mainly through contamination by fecal matter, used to kill and paralyze thousands of children annually worldwide. The risk of infection from the disease, which causes paralysis in children in under one per cent of cases, was also low because of high vaccination rates, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said.

Health officials in Britain are warning parents to ensure their children have been vaccinated against polio after the virus that causes the disease was ...

The polio vaccine is given to young babies in the U.K. as part of a combination vaccine. That person would then have passed the virus to closely linked individuals in London, who shed the virus into their feces. The last case of natural polio infection acquired in the U.K. was in 1984. The U.K. Health Security Agency said it believes the virus was “vaccine-derived,” meaning it came from someone who received the live polio vaccine abroad. “Most of the U.K. population will be protected from vaccination in childhood, but in some communities with low vaccine coverage, individuals may remain at risk," said Dr. Vanessa Saliba, an epidemiologist at the health agency. LONDON -- Health officials in Britain warned parents Wednesday to ensure their children have been vaccinated against polio after the virus that causes the disease was found in London sewage samples in recent months.

The last case of wild polio was contracted in 1984 and the UK has remained polio-free since 2003.

Why it matters: The discovery means it's likely there has been some spread of a "vaccine-derived" polio virus between close contacts in London, the agency said. What they're saying: "Vaccine-derived polio virus is rare and the risk to the public overall is extremely low," Vanessa Saliba, consultant epidemiologist at the health agency, said in a statement. - Polio virus samples will pop up after someone vaccinated with the oral polio vaccine shed traces of the "vaccine-like" polio virus in their excrement, the agency said. The concern: A "vaccine-derived" polio virus can cause serious illness, such as paralysis, in those who have not been fully vaccinated, the U.K. agency said. Driving the news: The health agency said it has found several "closely related viruses" to polio virus in sewage samples taken between February and May. The last case of wild polio in the U.K. was confirmed in 1984 and the country has remained polio-free since 2003.

"A successful transition of polio assets is essential to sustain a polio-free world, strengthen essential immunization and disease surveillance, and boost the ...

The mission focused on ensuring that essential functions are maintained in Iraq as it transitions out of Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) support. The polio transition process has been designed to build the capacity of the polio workforce to support broader health priorities, including improving essential immunization, disease surveillance and outbreak preparedness and response, in primary health care centres and beyond. The team paid a visit to the Central Public Health Laboratory, the Communicable Disease Control Department and the Integrated Surveillance Department. The team also visited one of Baghdad's primary health care centres to witness first-hand the performance of immunization and other essential health services.

LONDON (AP) — Health officials in Britain warned parents Wednesday to ensure their children have been vaccinated against polio after the virus that ca...

The polio vaccine is given to young babies in the U.K. as part of a combination vaccine. That person would then have passed the virus to closely linked individuals in London, who shed the virus into their feces. The last case of natural polio infection acquired in the U.K. was in 1984. “Most of the U.K. population will be protected from vaccination in childhood, but in some communities with low vaccine coverage, individuals may remain at risk,“ said Dr. Vanessa Saliba, an epidemiologist at the health agency. The U.K. Health Security Agency said it believes the virus was “vaccine-derived,” meaning it came from someone who received the live polio vaccine abroad. LONDON (AP) — Health officials in Britain warned parents Wednesday to ensure their children have been vaccinated against polio after the virus that causes the disease was found in London sewage samples in recent months.

The vaccine-derived poliovirus -- which originates from live attenuated polio viruses contained in oral polio vaccines -- still trigger outbreaks, most recently ...

Traces of type 2 vaccine-derived poliovirus were detected during routine surveillance of sewage in London.

The National Health Service will begin reaching out to parents of children aged under 5 in the capital who are not up to date with their vaccinations, the government said. “In this instance, the isolates identified between February and June 2022 are genetically related. The U.K. health security agency says it normally detects between one and three “poliovirus isolates per year” in sewage but they are normally one-offs and unrelated to each other. Surveillance, vaccination and investment to— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) #EndPolio🌍 is critical, as the #UK's announcement of environmental #poliosamples identified in London sewage reminds us. So far, the polio virus has only been detected in sewage samples but investigations are underway to establish if any community transmission is occurring. There is no cure, but vaccinations since the 1960s, mostly in childhood, have been a game changer allowing many countries to eradicate wild polio.