Rome (Fides Service) – A new epidemic of polio has been registered in Nigeria, the counry which has the highest number of polio cases in the whole world. Epidemologists say the cause is insufficent vaccination in this most populous country of Africa. The campaign for vaccination launched by the World Health Organisation failed to cover the entire territory.
The campaing involves hundreds of thousands of volnteers and health workers who aim also to vaccinate in a short period children in Benin, Burkina Fasp, Ghana Niger and Togo. The campaign, costing 10 million dollars, responds to reports of growing number of children left paralysed by polio in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Niger e Togo, by the polio virus genetically identified in northern Nigeria. Recently another case was registered in Chad where, with Cameroon, the vaccination campaign hopes to reach in mid November. Kano State in Nigeria affected by a new wave of polio has infected other parts of the country, such as Lagos with a population of 10 million. Experts are convinced the polio in Nigeria can only be eliminated with a massive vaccination campaign. The virus is found only in 7 countries, Nigeria, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Afghanistan, Niger and Somalia) compared 125 in 1988 when the first global plan to eliminate polio was launched (http://www.polioeradication.org/).
Polio is highly contagious and it affects children under 5 attacking the nervous system and eventually causing paralysis. One out of 200 cases causes permanent paralysis usually in the legs and in 5-10% the death of the child. (AP) (29/10/2003 Fides; lines:25 words:308)