Chronicle Editor
Thandeka Moyo-Ndlovu, [email protected]
BULAWAYO province is targeting to vaccinate at least 214 000 children aged 10 years and below for polio during a mass vaccination campaign that starts today in Zimbabwe following an outbreak of the disease.
Polio is a highly infectious disease that largely affects children under five years of age, causing permanent paralysis (approximately 1 in 200 infections) or death (2-10 percent of those paralyzed).
The virus is transmitted from person to person, mainly through the fecal-oral route or, less frequently, by a common vehicle (e.g., contaminated water or food) and multiplies in the intestine, from where it can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis.
The incubation period is usually 7-10 days but can range from 4-35 days. Up to 90 percent of those infected are either asymptomatic or experience mild symptoms and the disease usually goes unrecognised.
Health and Child Care Deputy Minister Sleiman Kwindini said two rounds of emergency national polio vaccination campaigns targeting all children below 10 years of age have been scheduled for February and March 2024.
The detailed Polio risk analysis conducted by the Ministry identified the below 10-year-old age group as having a higher risk of these type 2 polioviruses since vaccines targeting this type were stopped globally in 2015 after global eradication.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter