August 14, 2008	Thursday	Sha'aban 11, 1429

PESHAWAR, Aug 13: Two new cases of polio, one in Peshawar and the other in Upper Dir, were confirmed by the National Institute of Health on Wednesday.

World Health Organisation officials told Dawn that 11-month-old Shaista, daughter of an Afghan refugee, was afflicted by P3 virus. She had not received any dose of oral polio vaccine (OPV).

It was the second case of polio found in the city in a week and genetic sequencing indicated resemblance to the one found in Afghanistan.

On Aug 8, an 18-month-old Afghan child had tested positive for polio. Both the families had received guests from Afghanistan and the babies might have contracted the virus from them.

Eight-month-old Nasreen of Dir Upper had received only two doses of the OPV. She has been affected by the dangerous P1 virus which can infect other children.

The WHO officials said that a three-day vaccination campaign would be held from Aug 19 to administer OPV to all under-five children in Peshawar. The Health officials plan to meet local Ulema and elected representatives to seek their support for the campaign. With the new cases, the number of polio cases found in the NWFP this year has risen to 11.