Geneva: The World Health Organization (WHO) today issued two disease outbreak news on circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2), in Tanzania, and Kenya.
It assessed the overall risk at the national level in Tanzania to be high due to the sub-optimal surveillance performance in some districts, sub-optimal vaccination coverage resulting in low population immunity and the ongoing population movement across neighbouring countries. In Kenya also it was high due to the overcrowded living conditions in the refugee camp, high rate of malnutrition, poor water and sanitation facilities, and frequent population movements with Somalia.
The situation at a glance in Tanzania
On July 4, 2023, the Ministry of Health of the United Republic of Tanzania notified WHO of the detection of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) in the country. The virus was isolated from a case of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) in the Rukwa region, southwestern Tanzania bordering Lake Tanganyika to the west and Zambia to the south. Gene sequencing of the isolated virus indicated close linkage with the cVDPV2 circulating in South Kivu, Demographic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The public health authorities of Tanzania’s Ministry of Health are conducting further field investigations including strengthening the AFP surveillance for the detection of additional AFP cases and subnational level immunity gap analysis to identify potential un-or under-immunized populations and/or areas to guide public health response activities.
The situation at a glance in Kenya
On July 11, 2023, WHO received an official report regarding the detection of a circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) in two acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) cases and two asymptomatic healthy children community contacts from Hagadera refugee camp, in Kenya, the second largest refugee camp in the world with over 100 000 refugees.
The genetic sequencing analyses showed that all four isolates are genetically linked to the cVDPV2 circulating in Banadir, Somalia.
– global bihari bureau
