Alarming Situation: Pakistan Reports 32nd Polio Case of the Year
The latest cases include three from Sindh and one from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Pakistan has reported four new cases of polio, raising the total number of cases this year to 32.
The latest reports include three cases from Sindh and one from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Notably, one of the new cases involves a six-year-old child from UC Ibrahim Hyderi in Malir, Karachi.
Another case was detected in UC Thul Toshe, Jacobabad, while a 22-month-old child was diagnosed in UC Murga, Dera Ismail Khan.
Genetic testing is currently underway for these cases.
This year, Balochistan has recorded the highest number of polio cases, with 16 reported, followed by 10 in Sindh, four in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, one in Punjab, and one in Islamabad.
A 23-month-old girl was diagnosed with poliovirus the day after her death on August 19 in the Kharan district of Balochistan.
Just a week earlier, another 10-month-old girl in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was confirmed to have contracted the virus, raising the total number of cases in the country to 23.
A recent mass polio vaccination campaign in September aimed to immunize 33 million children under five across 115 districts. Another round is set to begin on October 28, with officials highlighting the importance of reaching mobile and migrant populations.
However, a report from the Institute for Disease Modeling (IMD) has raised concerns about the rising number of wild poliovirus cases in Pakistan, warning that the total could reach between 55 and 65 by the end of 2024.