by Theleaders-Online | December 10, 2019 2:53 am
KUALA LUMPUR: World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) confirmed that the polio disease detected in Tuaran, Sabah is the same virus that broke out and is spreading in the southern Philippines.
In a joint statement, the two world bodies said that the type of polio virus contracted by the three months old boy in Tuaran, Sabah is a rare strain called circulating vaccine-derived polio (cVDPV) Type 1.
“These polio viruses only occur if a population is seriously under immunised.
“The virus has the potential to cause paralysis or occasionally death,” they added.
They said confirmation of the type of virus was based on testing conducted by the WHO’s Regional Polio Reference Laboratory in Melbourne, Australia on December 6-10, after the Sabah boy developed fever and paralysis.
The Philippines declared a polio outbreak on September 19, WHO and Unicef pointed out, noting that Malaysia’s last case was 27 years ago in 1992.
WHO and Unicef said they have been assisting Malaysia with technical advice on the outbreak response, on-the-ground monitoring and support for risk communication.
The two bodies advised parents and guardians to ensure their children, especially those under five years old who are at highest risk, get the full number of vaccination shots for full protection.
They gave an assurance that polio vaccines are very safe and are the main reason for 99% of the reduction of cases worldwide.
By Irman Hashim
Source URL: https://theleaders-online.com/whounicef-sabah-polio-outbreak-originated-from-the-philippines/
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