- The interruption caused by covid led to a drop in the administration of the vaccine.
- Tests link the strain to sewage samples detected in the UK.
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| An illustration of polio. / European Pharmaceutical Review |
The alert for the return of polio jumps the Atlantic: after London, they discover that the virus has been circulating in New York for months
The disease polio was believed to be on the verge of being completely eradicated from the world. Cases had been reduced by more than 99%. In Spain, for example, the last endemic case of polio was in 1998 and the country was certified free of the disease in 2002.
And suddenly the alarm sounds; first in London and then in New York (USA). At the end of June, in the capital of the United Kingdom, the virus that causes polio was detected in the sewers. Now, the New York area has seen the country's first case of polio in a decade.
The last case was registered in the US in 2013, and it was already exceptional. Polio was considered eradicated in the country since 1979, after a national vaccination campaign in the 1950s and early 1960s.
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Polio in New York sewage
The new case has now been detected in Rockland County, a suburb of New York City. An unvaccinated young man contracted polio in June and became paralyzed. Although residents have been asked to exercise extreme vigilance (polio is very contagious), health authorities believe that it is unlikely that infections will be detected among people born in that country because polio is part of the mandatory school vaccination system.
The chain of transmission originated from someone who received the oral vaccine outside of the United States
Following confirmation of the case, sewage surveillance found 21 sewage samples that tested positive for polio, 13 in Rockland County and eight in neighboring Orange County, CNBC reports. Twenty of those samples, collected between May and July, are genetically related to the strain this young man contracted. It has also been detected in sewage samples from New York City itself.
The 1st case of paralytic #polio in the US in almost 10 yrs in an unvaccinated adult & poliovirus in wastewater in NY are an urgent reminder of importance of vaccination. Those not fully vaccinated against polio are at risk for infection & paralysis. More: https://t.co/BFBwv1wkkb pic.twitter.com/pVUo5auCeA
— CDC (@CDCgov) August 16, 2022
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), polio has been circulating in the New York metropolitan area for months. His investigation, released last Tuesday, shows that the infected did not travel abroad during the period in which he was exposed to polio. The strain he contracted is related to a weakened form of the virus used in the oral vaccine.
This person is known to have attended a large gathering eight days prior to developing symptoms. It can take 7 to 21 days from initial exposure to the poliovirus for someone to develop paralysis.
The virus may have been circulating for a year, although the place where transmission began is unknown.
The CDC explains that the US stopped using the oral polio vaccine in 2000, which means that the chain of transmission originated in someone who received the oral vaccine outside the country. The oral vaccine uses a live virus strain that can still replicate, which means that people who are not vaccinated can catch the virus from recently immunized individuals. Now, in North America, a vaccine is used in which the virus is inactivated so that it cannot spread.
Parents: Are your children up to date with their polio vaccines? Talk to your child’s healthcare provider about doses and timing they need. You have the power to protect them! Learn more: https://t.co/gmasombntm. pic.twitter.com/hTzOcNyH8M
— CDC (@CDCgov) August 15, 2022
Genetic analyzes have linked the vaccine-derived strain circulating in the New York metropolitan area to sewage samples detected in Israel and the UK. In the latter, the Health Security Agency (UKHSA) already pointed out in June that the outbreak detected in London was caused by a person who returned to Great Britain after having been vaccinated against polio orally and spread it locally.
Although related to the oral vaccine strain, the virus the Rockland individual contracted had ten changes in one region of the pathogen. According to the CDC, this indicates that the virus may have been circulating for a year, although the place where transmission began is unknown.
Covid interference
Vaccine-derived poliovirus has the potential to spread, particularly where vaccination rates are lower. Data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that polio vaccine coverage for children under the age of two in Rockland County decreased from 67% in 2020 to about 60% in 2022. Even, in some parts of the county, it dropped to 37%.
#Polio being detected in sewage samples in New York 🇺🇸 is another sign that polio anywhere is a threat to children everywhere. Important to vaccinate all children and fully fund the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and #EndPolio for good. https://t.co/PknHQtOfC8
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) August 12, 2022
Covid has had something to do with it. According to the CDC, the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic has led to a drop in polio vaccine administration, leaving communities at risk of outbreaks.
The World Health Organization (WHO), together with UNICEF and the Global Alliance on Vaccines and Immunization, has recalled that in 2020, around 80 million children under one year of age in 68 poor countries did not receive vaccination against serious diseases such as polio, diphtheria or measles. The reason, the measures, and restrictions imposed during the covid-19 crisis.
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