Poliomyelitis in Pakistan

Pakistan is one of the two remaining countries in the world where poliomyelitis (polio) is still categorized as an endemic viral infection, the other being Afghanistan. As of October 2015, there have been 38 documented cases of wild poliovirus in Pakistan in the past year.

Though the polio immunization campaign in the country started in 1974, the efforts for eradication officially started in 1994. The infection remains endemic despite over 100 rounds of vaccination being carried out in the past decade. Pakistan had the world's highest number of polio cases in 2014, and as of October 2015, it has maintained this record. However, the number of cases in 2015 are a fraction of those recorded in 2014. The country has announced a goal of eradication by 2016.

The Expanded Programme of Immunization (EPI) was begun in Pakistan by the World Health Organization (WHO) in the 1970s to combat deaths from six vaccine-preventable diseases. In 1980, the EPI had vaccinated just 2% of the population against polio; by 1990, the coverage had increased to 54%. In a 1994 interview, CDC officials predicted total polio eradication in Pakistan within two to three years; by 1995, the WHO projected total eradication by the year 2000, a target that the organization reaffirmed in 1998.

However, despite donor attention, the rate of vaccinations sagged. By 1991, only 83 percent of Pakistani children had been vaccinated. Research by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in April 1998 cited a failure to vaccinate, vaccine failure, and inadequate immunization strategies as causes for the continued incidences of polio in this time. Reasons for under-vaccination included the population being uninformed, considering vaccination unimportant, and having to travel long distances to vaccination sites. In response to these challenges, organizations including the WHO, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), CDC, Rotary International, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation pulled together to develop and fund intensive eradication campaigns, including door-to-door vaccinations.

In March 2001, about 27 million children were vaccinated across the country in the hope that Pakistan could be virus-free by the end of that year. As of 2004, when there were 30 million children in Pakistan under five, about 200,000 health workers were required for a vaccination campaign that was carried out eight times a year. A documentary, Polio True Stories, was aired on several television channels to make people aware of the problems facing people affected by the disease.

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Wikipedia