The World Polio Day is observed on October 24 every year to commemorate the fight against poliomyelitis. In 1988, UNICEF joined the Global Polio Eradication Initiative along with Rotary International and other partners, launching a campaign to rid the world of polio. At the time, the highly-infectious disease was at a peak, affecting more than 350,000 children in 125 countries annually.
Today, polio does not exist in most of the world, thanks to this historic collective effort. Cases are down by 99.9% worldwide. Just two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan, have reported cases of wild polio so far this year, while on July 24, 2015, Nigeria, Africa’s last remaining polio-endemic country, recorded the first year in history without a single case.
World Polio Day 2015 Theme:-
End Polio Now: Make History Today
Objectives and Messages of the World Polio Day:-
- Eliminating polio virus, as soon as possible, especially in the two remaining countries; Afghanistan and Pakistan.
- Attaining the ultimate goal to eradicate polio worldwide.
- Contributing to the development of health organizations, strengthening routine immunization and monitoring diseases systematically.
Key Facts on Polio:-
- Polio (poliomyelitis) mainly affects children under five years of age.
- One in each 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis (usually in the legs). Among those paralyzed, 5% to 10% die when their breathing muscles become immobilized.
- Polio is an infection caused by a virus that affects the entire body, including muscles and nerves.
- There are 3 types of polio: non-paralytic (does not lead to paralysis), spinal-paralytic (can result in the paralysis of one or more limbs), and bulbar (can result in weak muscles, reflex loss, and respiratory problems).
- Up to 95% of polio cases show no symptoms. A small number of people may have fever, sore throat, headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, or diarrhea.
What is left to do??
To end polio forever, all countries must strengthen vaccine service delivery, address the reach children who all missed the vaccination programs.
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Who discovered and developed the first Polio Vaccine?
