WHO Confirms Case of Vaccine-Deprived Polio in Meghalaya

After India being polio free for a decade now, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed a case of vaccine-derived polio in Meghalaya.

Last month, a 2-year old child from Tikrikila in Meghalaya’s West Garo Hills district showed symptoms of polio. Soon, WHO collected samples and investigated the case and now it has confirmed that the child is suffering from polio because of vaccine hesitancy.

A senior official from the Meghalaya Health Department confirmed that the child has contracted vaccine-derived polio. The official clarified that this is not a case of wild polio, as was doubted earlier, but an infection that may occur in some children due to vaccine hesitancy.

The state government is now setting up a state-level task force on immunization, to be led by the Principal Secretary of Health, to involve deputy commissioners from all districts and address the issue more seriously.

Ram Kumar S., Secretary Health and Family Welfare, Government of Meghalaya, explained that there is a specific protocol to follow when any case of vaccine-derived polio or any type of polio is reported.
According to the Secretary, when the Tikrikila case was detected, all necessary actions were taken, and samples were collected from 28 children of the village. All these samples tested negative for polio.

He noted that this appears to be an isolated case, and even in this particular child, there is no significant predisposition to polio. The issue seems to be related to a lack of routine immunization rather than the vaccine itself.

He further indicated that the WHO team, after returning from their field visit, recommended strengthening surveillance in certain areas where it is currently insufficient and also about the measles-rubella outbreak.