The virus that causes polio infects the nerve system, causing paralysis, respiratory problems, and occasionally even death.
Health organisations resurrect the International Polio Day on October 24 to highlight global efforts to eradicate the disease.
Due to the polio virus, the illness primarily affects children under the age of five and poses a threat to the lives of millions of children.
To honour the birth of Jonas Salik, who headed the first team to create a polio vaccine, Rotary International started the International Polio Day more than ten years ago.
The use of the ineffective polio vaccination and the subsequent administration of the oral polio virus vaccine, both invented by Albert Sabine, led to the global polioctomy experiment (GPEI) in 1988.
In addition to commemorating the numerous parents, professionals, and volunteers whose efforts have made polio elimination possible, the organisation hosts the international event to raise awareness of the value of polio vaccination in protecting every child from this deadly illness.
The World Health Organization examined a number of statistics and data in its most recent reports on polio, including:
As the virus invades the nervous system and can result in total paralysis within hours, polio is a highly contagious disease that causes disability and poses a threat to life.
The virus is transmitted from one person to another and spreads mainly through the oral wild road, often through water or contaminated food and multiplies in the intestine.
Unfortunately, most people with the virus will not suffer from any symptoms, while only 25% suffer from symptoms similar to influenza symptoms, especially fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, neck stiffness and pain in the extremities.
However, 1 in 200 people experiences irreversible paralysis (often in the legs), which results in a lifelong impairment and may even be fatal since 5 to 10% of those who sustain injuries pass away when their breathing muscles are damaged.
Since there is no cure for the illness, which results in paralysis once contracted, it is crucial to spread the word about the necessity of vaccines as the only means of preventing it.
Two vaccines are available: the oral polio vaccine and the obstructed polio vaccine. The polio vaccine, which is administered numerous times, can protect the child for life.
In order to provide the best possible protection for the populace, they are both unquestionably efficient and safe, and both are used in various groups around the world based on local epidemic and programmatic conditions.
World Polio Day Facts & Figures 2022
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