Re: India: One Suspected Case of Polio Reported in Bihar Under Investigation
Re: India: One Suspected Case of Polio Reported in Bihar Under Investigation
Published Date: 2012-10-11 15:18:47
Subject: PRO/EDR> Poliomyelitis - worldwide (10): India, susp, RFI
Archive Number: 20121011.1337616
POLIOMYELITIS - WORLDWIDE (10): INDIA, SUSPECTED, REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
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Date: Thu 11 Oct 2012 17:29 IST
Source: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Press Information Bureau, Government of India [edited]
http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=88337
One suspected case of polio reported in Bihar under investigation
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One suspected case of poliovirus has been reported in Darbhanga district of Bihar. The case is under detailed investigation. As a measure of abundant precaution, an immunization drive is being carried out in 28 districts of Bihar early next week [week of 15 Oct 2012].
The case is suspected to be of wild poliovirus type 3 (WPV3). Bihar has not had any case of WPV3 since January 2010. India has been polio free since [13 Jan 2011]. The WPV3 strain is prevalent in Nigeria and Pakistan.
Further information will be shared when the results of the full investigations are available.
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Given the official source of the information above -- the Government of India Press Bureau -- and the additional information that a wild poliovirus type 3 (WPV3) is suspected, it is highly likely that this case will be confirmed as a WPV3-associated case of poliomyelitis. As the press release notes, India has not had a confirmed case of WPV associated polio since 13 Jan 2011, 21 months ago. India had been removed from the list of polio-endemic countries earlier this year (2012), and was headed toward a polio-free status if there were no reports of WPV associated disease for 3 consecutive years.
Of note is that WPV3 has not been reported in Bihar for almost 3 years (last report January 2010).
The mention that the WPV3 strain is prevalent in Nigeria and Pakistan, both still classified as polio-endemic countries, is most likely a prelude to the genetic studies on this WPV3 isolate to determine the most likely origin of this virus. If found to be a recently imported WPV3 from either one of these countries, this case may not be counted as an indigenous case, but rather a recent importation from a known polio-endemic area. Of note, during the period 1 Jan 2012 to 3 Oct 2012 there have been 17 cases of WPV3 identified in Nigeria and 3 cases of WPV3 identified in Pakistan (one of which was a mixed infection with both WPV1 and WPV3 identified)(see
http://www.polioeradication.org/Dataandmonitoring/Poliothisweek.aspx). The date of most recent onset of WPV3 associated polio was 12 Aug 2012 in Nigeria and 18 Apr 2012 in Pakistan (see
http://www.polioeradication.org/Por...ring/Wild_poliovirus_list_2007_2012_02Oct.pdf).
More information on the genetic profile of the WPV3 identified would be greatly appreciated when available. - Mod.MPP]