Fresh case of polio in India, infected child had taken oral vaccine
Fresh case of polio in India, infected child had taken oral vaccine : India, News - India Today
A year after India went off the list of polio endemic countries, a third case of the dreaded disease has been reported.
An 11-month-old baby has tested positive for vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) in Beed district in Maharashtra, said a newspaper report on Friday. The boy's stool was found carrying the vaccine-virus.
The first case of VDPV infection was reported last year. A five-month-old from West Bengal got infected after taking oral polio vaccine.
WHO took India off the list of polio endemic countries at a summit in 2012 and had to remain polio-free for the next two years to achieve the polio-free status.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), an immune response is activated in the body by an attenuated vaccine-virus found in the oral vaccine. The weakened vaccine-virus is replicated in the intestine for a limited period when a child is immunised. This in turn builds up antibodies, developing immuntiy. Simultaneously, the virus is also excreted and can spread in areas of inadequate sanitation.