Not medical advice. This site is general information only. In an emergency call your local emergency number. For advice about your own health, speak to a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified health professional.
Polio Eradication Endgame
About Polio Eradication Endgame
The Global Polio Eradication Initiative has reduced polio cases by over 99.9 percent since 1988. Wild poliovirus type 2 was declared eradicated in 2015 and type 3 in 2019. Only type 1 remains, with cases confined to Pakistan and Afghanistan. The endgame is complicated by vaccine derived poliovirus. The oral Sabin vaccine can revert to virulence, causing paralysis. In recent years, hundreds of vaccine derived polio cases have occurred annually across dozens of countries. The eradication strategy involves phased withdrawal of oral vaccines and introduction of inactivated vaccine. A novel oral polio vaccine type 2 nOPV2, designed to be more genetically stable, received WHO emergency use listing in November 2020 and was first used in 2021. Eradication target dates have repeatedly been pushed back. The remaining challenges are political, social, and security related rather than technical.
Related Entries
Vaccine Hesitancy
Vaccine hesitancy is a major threat to public health. The modern anti vaccine movement was amplified...
Vaccine Safety VAERS
The Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System VAERS was established in 1990 as a national early warning...
Operation Warp Speed
Operation Warp Speed was the US government program to accelerate COVID 19 vaccine development. Annou...
Gavi The Vaccine Alliance
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, was founded in 2000 to increase access to vaccines in the worlds poorest...