Following the detection of an outbreak of poliomyelitis in London, England, health authorities decided to urgently offer boosters of the vaccine to almost a million children under the age of ten after it was confirmed that the virus that causes paralysis has spread in the capital of the country.
This is the first outbreak of polio in the UK in more than 40 years. The virus has reportedly been detected more than 100 times in sewage from eight districts in the north and northeast of the city.
Last June, the first incident was reported, which was attributed to a single location, in northeast London. However, this August 10, the United Kingdom Health Security Agency announced that 116 cases have been detected in the capital, in places where the acceptance of the vaccine in children is low, with a rate of 55 percent.
Although, so far, no case of poliovirus has been officially diagnosed by a doctor, experts believe that due to its presence in sewage, it is spreading uncontrollably in the city. However, the health chiefs pointed out that the risk to the population is low, since most people are protected with vaccines administered during childhood.
That is why health authorities announced that starting in September, the 900,000 children, from one to nine years old, who live in London, will be offered a booster vaccine against poliovirus, in order to increase the protection and help reduce the spread. For its part, the Joint Vaccination and Immunization Committee has recommended a rapid reinforcement campaign. It also advises starting in areas where there is a record of the presence of the virus.
It is important to know that polio is a serious viral infection, common throughout the world until 1988, when cases began to decline by 99 percent. This virus lives in the throat and intestines for up to six weeks, but can spread to the spinal cord, causing muscle weakness and paralysis.
Most affected people show no signs of infection. However, about one in 20 have symptoms such as fever, muscle weakness, headache, nausea and vomiting. Poliovirus is spread through airborne droplets when someone coughs or sneezes or comes in contact with food, water, clothing, or feces from an infected person.