ISLAMABAD: The National Institute of Health (NIH) Islamabad has confirmed two new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases, bringing the total number of cases in Pakistan to five since January 2025.
The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication on Friday confirmed the detection of one case each from District Kambar in Sindh and District Mandi Bahauddin in Punjab.
This is the third polio case from Sindh and the first from Punjab this year.
Pakistan recorded 74 polio cases in 2024, out of these, 27 were from Balochistan, 23 from Sindh, 22 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.
The latest development comes as health workers conclude a targeted vaccination drive in high-risk areas later Friday. Earlier this month, authorities launched a weeklong nationwide anti-polio campaign aiming to immunize 44.2 million children under the age of five.
Moreover, a targeted vaccination activity in 104 union councils bordering Afghanistan or having Afghan refugee camps/populations is also in progress (February 24-28) to vaccinate over 0.66 million children, to reduce the risk of cross-border and internal poliovirus transmission.
Polio is a paralyzing disease that has no cure. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five is essential to provide children high immunity against this terrible disease.
