ISLAMABAD: Two cases of polio were confirmed by Polio Virology Laboratory at the National Institute of Health here on Wednesday.

The two cases involve a 42-month-old girl from Gadap Town, Karachi, and a 55-month-old girl from Khyber tribal district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The laboratory detected poliovirus from their stool samples on Oct 1 and Sept 30, respectively.

“Though the girls have been infected with poliovirus, they have not been afflicted with paralysis, which shows their immunity level was high as they were getting polio vaccines regularly. However, they were not given the Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV),” said Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication Babar bin Atta.

“The girl from Karachi fell while playing and was taken to hospital as her relatives thought her hip joint had been dislocated. The girl from Khyber was brought to a hospital with the complaint of facial palsy.”

With the two new cases, the total number of polio cases detected so far this year in the country has reached six.

Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) contains alive but weak virus and used to improve the immunity level of children. IPV, which consists of killed virus and administered through injection, makes a child totally immune from the virus of crippling disease, but it is costly.

“The condition of girls shows the success of the polio programme as immune system of children has been enhanced in Pakistan,” he said.

A statement issued by the Ministry of National Health Services states that fortunately both girls had received multiple doses of the OPV which boosted their immunity and protected them from a life-long paralysis.

“Poliovirus has been continuously found in the sewage waters of Peshawar and Karachi for the past 12 months. The programme will continue to focus on clearing these two remaining reservoirs from the virus with full force,” it stated.

National Coordinator for Polio Eradication Dr Rana Safdar said in a statement that the multiple vaccine doses gave the children the immunity boost to fight off the poliovirus attack.

“They have no residual weaknesses and will live like normal children. It is important for every under five-year-old child to be vaccinated in every round, so immunity levels are high enough to fight off the virus in its entirety,” he said.

Earlier this year, three polio cases were reported from Dukki district of Balochistan, while one case was reported from Charsadda district of KP. Being fully vaccinated in routine and door-to-door campaigns, the Charsadda child had also escaped paralysis.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2018