80% of world's population living in polio-free certified regions

MUMBAI: WHO southeast Asia region was certified polio-free by an independent commission under the WHO certification process on Friday. This is the fourth of six WHO Regions to be certified and with this step, 80% of the world's population now lives in polio-free regions.

Certification of the Region comes as countries prepare for the introduction of inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) in routine immunization as part of the eventual phasing out of oral polio vaccines (OPV). More than 120 countries currently use only OPV. These countries will introduce a dose of IPV by the end of 2015 as part of their commitment to the global polio endgame plan which aims to ensure a polio-free world by 2018.

Before a Region can be certified polio-free, several conditions must be satisfied such as: at least three years of zero confirmed cases due to indigenous wild poliovirus; excellent laboratory-based surveillance for poliovirus; demonstrated capacity to detect, report, and respond to imported cases of poliomyelitis; and assurance of safe containment of polioviruses in laboratories (introduced since 2000).

"This is a momentous victory for the millions of health workers who have worked to eradicate polio from the region," said Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, regional director for the WHO South-East Asia Region. An independent panel of 11 public health experts, epidemiology, virology, clinical medicine and related specialties constituting the South-East Asia Regional Certification Commission for Polio Eradication (SEA-RCCPE) met for two days to review evidence from countries before reaching the decision that all 11 countries of the Region are now polio-free and have met the requirements for certification.

WHO Regional Director also sounded a word of caution to maintain high vigilance against importation of polio. "Until polio is globally eradicated, all countries are at risk and the region's polio-free status remains fragile. High immunization coverage can prevent an imported virus from finding an under-immunized, susceptible population," she added.

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