Peshawar:
A new case of wild poliovirus from the Bannu district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP)-the sixth in the province of 2025-there will bring the national figure to 12, health officials said Friday.
The infected child belongs to Union Council Shams Khel in the Bannu district of southern KP – a health official in the area describes as the country’s most vulnerable poliozone, where poor access and vaccine opposition continue to inhibit extermination efforts.
Earlier this month, the health authorities confirmed a case of wild poliovirus in Gilgit-Baltist’s Diameer District-the first such instance reported from the region.
So far this year, Sindh has reported four cases, Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan each, with the remaining six, which originate from different districts in southern KP. Resurgence emphasizes persistent immunity holes, especially in rural areas and difficult to access areas.
Read: Poliovirus detected in Hyderabad test
By 2025, three national polio vaccination campaigns were carried out, with almost 45 million children under the age of five receiving oral drops. Over 400,000 front line workers, including 225,000 female volunteers, have participated in the effort.
Health officials have encouraged parents to ensure that their children get every dose that warns that polio remains incurable and can only be prevented through vaccination. They emphasized that even a single unanswered dose leaves a child who is vulnerable to life -threatening paralysis.
Pakistan is one of the two remaining countries in the world where polio is still categorized as an endemic viral infection, the other is Afghanistan.
