Polio Update Report

In 1988, when most of the world's children were unvaccinated against polio, Rotary took on the cause of eliminating the crippling disease by universally vaccinating every child. Today, with more than 2.5 billion children worldwide vaccinated and immune from polio, new cases have be reduced to a few per year and contained to two countries, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
 
This page contains information gathered by the World Health Organization and is updated weekly. For more information, contact District Polio Chair Lorna Gunning Fratschko.
 
Poliovirus Weekly Update
15-Jan-2025, World Health Organization
 

Officially reported WPV1 and cVDPV cases as of 14 January 2025

Wild poliovirus (WPV)

·         Total global WPV1 cases in 2023: 12

·         Total global WPV1 cases in 2024: 95 (compared with 12 for the same period in 2023)


Circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus (c5DPV) cases

·         Total global cVDPV cases in 2023: 528

·         Total global cVDPV cases in 2024: 266 (compared with 469 for the same period in 2023)

 

 

New wild poliovirus isolates reported this week:
AFP cases: 2
Environment: 17
Others: 0

New cVDPV isolates reported this week:
AFP cases: 11
Environment: 11
Others: 2

HEADLINES

New Global Polio Surveillance Action Plan (GPSAP) online - Partners of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) have updated the Global Polio Surveillance Action Plan (GPSAP) for 2025-2026, to maximise benefits of available technical and operational tools. The GPSAP 2025-2026 is aligned with the GPEI Polio Eradication Strategy 2022-2026: delivering on a promise, extension to 2029, and reflects the key surveillance activities that will facilitate achievement of the GPEI strategic goals to eradicate wild poliovirus type 1 and interrupt transmission of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2. The GPSAP is available here, and a Webinar is being organised later in the January on Tuesday 28 January 2025, 15.00hrs CET, to formally launch the GPSAP.  The Zoom link for the Webinar is:  https://who.zoom.us/j/91464319713

Maintaining detailed and accurate inventories of poliovirus infectious and potentially infectious materials, in laboratories and other facilities, is a key first step to minimizing containment risks. A new data collection and reporting system being rolled out in the African region is helping to enhance data timeliness, quality and reliability.  More.  

Summary of new polioviruses this week:

  • Pakistan:  two WPV1 cases and 17 WPV1-positive environmental samples
  • Chad:  three cVDPV2 cases
  • Ethiopia:  seven cVDPV2 cases
  • Germany:  eleven cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
  • Nigeria:  one cVDPV2 case

 
For more country information, please visit the respective pages within the Outbreak and Endemic country sections of the GPEI website.