The World Health Organization (WHO) has decided to prolong travel restrictions on Pakistan for an additional three months due to the persistent risk of a polio outbreak in the country.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has decided to prolong travel restrictions on Pakistan for an additional three months due to the persistent risk of a polio outbreak in the country.
The decision was made following recommendations from the Emergency Committee on Polio, highlighting the continued presence of the poliovirus in Pakistan as a major factor contributing to the ongoing travel restrictions.
The WHO Director-General convened the 37th meeting of the Emergency Committee under the International Health Regulations (2005) concerning the international spread of the poliovirus on December 12, 2023.
During this crucial meeting, the committee reviewed data on the wild poliovirus (WPV1) and the cessation of outbreaks of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2). Technical reports from various countries, including Afghanistan, Egypt, Guinea, Mauritania, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Zimbabwe, were presented.
Pakistan, in particular, reported a concerning total of six cases of WPV1 in the previous year. Alarming environmental detections were also noted, with 60 positive samples identified in the three-month span from September to November.
New instances of polio transmission have emerged in various regions, including the Quetta Block in Balochistan, Karachi in Sindh, Islamabad/Rawalpindi, and Peshawar in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province.
Efforts have been made to counter the escalating situation, with an additional 160,000 children vaccinated in southern KP as part of the polio action plan. However, several obstacles impede eradication efforts, such as political instability, insecurity in specific areas necessitating police patrols for frontline workers, and vaccination boycotts.
The Emergency Committee unanimously agreed that the risk of international poliovirus spread remains a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). Consequently, the committee recommended extending the Temporary Recommendations for an additional three months, underscoring the severity of the situation.
Furthermore, the committee warned of the potential reintroduction of Wild Poliovirus Type 1 (WPV1) in the southern region, attributed to persistent transmission in eastern Afghanistan and cross-border spread into Pakistan. The substantial population of unvaccinated zero-dose children in southern Afghanistan adds to the looming threat.
WHO’s International Travel and Health division have issued advisories for all travelers to polio-affected areas, emphasizing the importance of being fully vaccinated against polio. Residents in areas with a polio presence are strongly urged to receive an extra dose of either oral polio vaccine (OPV) or inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) within a timeframe of 4 weeks to 12 months before embarking on travel.
As the global community grapples with the challenges posed by the persistent threat of polio in Pakistan, concerted efforts are needed to address the identified obstacles and ensure the effective implementation of vaccination campaigns to safeguard public health on an international scale.
The extension of travel restrictions reflects the gravity of the situation and the collective commitment to preventing the spread of polio in the region.