ISLAMABAD: The federal capital’s both environmental samples have been found negative for the poliovirus, said District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Zaeem Zia through social media on Sunday.

“Polio environment sample which was positive in Sabzimandi area has now turned negative. This is all the efforts of polio frontline workers. The DEOC/NEOC and partner organisations will continue to make right decisions to keep Islamabad safer,” he tweeted.

It is worth mentioning that on August 2, contrary to the government’s claims that poliovirus had been restricted to southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa districts, environmental samples from seven cities returned positive.

The virus was reported in sewage samples collected from Islamabad and Lahore after a gap of 16 months. Both the cities were declared polio-free in March 2021.

Other cities in which poliovirus was detected included Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Bannu, Nowshera and Swat.

Sewage samples were collected on a monthly basis from 58 sites across the country under the supervision of provincial health departments and tested by Regional Polio Reference Laboratory at the NIH Islamabad.

If the poliovirus is found in sewage, the sample is called ‘positive’. Samples of sewage from an area are a basic parameter to determine the success of polio campaigns. Moreover, the presence of virus in sewage also shows that the immunity level of children in the area has fallen and they are at the risk of catching the disease.

Dr Zia, while talking to Dawn, said that it was a great news that environment samples collected from two places of the federal capital were found negative.

“It shows that the residents [who can become carrier of the virus], especially children, have been saved from the crippling disease.

We are very thankful to Minister for Health Abdul Qadir Patel and Secretary Health Dr Mohammad Fakhar-i-Alam who gave us full support and confidence that we can eradicate the virus from the environmental samples of the city,” he said.

Dr Zia said special focus was given on missed children and it was ensured that every child would be vaccinated.

Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by poliovirus mainly affecting children under the age of five years. It invades the nervous system and can cause paralysis or even death. While there is no cure for polio, vaccination is the most effective way to protect children from this disease.

Each time a child under the age of five is vaccinated, their protection against the virus is increased. Repeated immunisations have protected millions of children from polio, allowing almost all countries to become polio-free except Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2022