Pakistan reports fourth polio case of 2022

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday reported fourth polio case of the year 2022 as a minor boy from North Waziristan was left paralysed by wild poliovirus, ARY News reported Wednesday quoting the health department.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Health, the wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) was confirmed in the boy from North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province by the polio laboratory at the National Institute of Health, Islamabad.

It is learnt that the said boy was not administered anti-polio drops during the drive against the crippling disease.

After staying a polio-free country for almost 15 months, Pakistan has reported four cases of polio in 2022 so far. All the cases have been reported in North Waziristan.

A five-day anti-polio campaign is currently underway across Pakistan. The polio drive began on May 23.

During the campaign, approximately 43.3 million children under the age of five years will be administered the anti-polio vaccine, reported Radio Pakistan.

Read more: Pakistan reports third polio case

A supplementary dose of Vitamin A drops will also be administered to children aged 6 to 59 months. Around 340,000 frontline workers will take part in the campaign to administer vaccines to the children at their doorsteps.

Earlier, inaugurating the campaign, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had assured that the government would take all measures to eradicate this crippling disease from the country.