One of the curses of the 20th century, polio has declined by

One of the curses of the 20th century, polio has declined by 99 percent in less than a quarter of a century, but still has a bolthole in three countries, including Pakistan, where six polio workers were shot dead Tuesday.

Thanks to one of the world’s most ambitious vaccination campaigns, poliomyelitis infections dropped from 350,000 in 1988 to 650 last year, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

In 1988, the tragic disease was endemic in more than 125 countries.

Today, it is found only in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria, where conflict, poverty or resistance by Islamic radicals hamper efforts to make polio the second human disease after smallpox to be eradicated.

These havens mean polio remains a global threat, experts say.

The virus can use even one person as a springboard for reconquest among an unvaccinated population.

“Failure to eradicate polio from these last remaining strongholds could result in as many as 200,000 new cases every year, within 10 years, all over the world,” a WHO fact sheet said.

Poliomyelitis is transmitted by a virus that enters the body through the mouth, usually in faecally-contaminated water or food.

It affects mainly children under the age of five, with one in 200 infections leading to irreversible paralysis, usually in the legs, often within hours of infection.

Of those paralysed, five to 10 percent die when their breathing muscles become immobilised.

The Americas were certified polio-free in 1994, the WHO’s western Pacific region in 2000 and Europe in 2002.

India joined the list in February this year thanks to a massive vaccination campaign.

Last year, Pakistan reported the highest number of polio cases in a decade, with 198 in total, compared to 144 in 2010, The Lancet reported in February. Afghanistan had 81 cases, up from 30 the year before, it said.

In Afghanistan vast areas are inaccessible due to war, but in Pakistan the campaign is complicated by suspicions that vaccination is a cover for espionage or sterilisation.

Nigeria, where religious radicals also resist the vaccination campaign, accounted for 104 of the 193 cases so far recorded worldwide this year, according to WHO statistics.

Eradicating polio in the next five years would save the world at least $40-50 billion (30-40 billion euros) in health costs, mainly in poor countries, the WHO says.

Source AFP