Tests revealed that the Jewish man in his 20s and from Rockland County, New York – who had been paralyzed by the disease – was infected with vaccine-derived polio virus type 2 (VDPV), like the one detected in sewage in other nations. It suggests there may be “multiple” chains of transmission of the virus circulating globally, polio expert Dr Adam Ratner told DailyMail.com. Today the New York Department of Health confirmed that the virus had been detected in sewage samples taken in Rockland County in early June. Health officials said this was a warning sign for anyone who has not been vaccinated against polio, once the most feared disease in America, to do so. Polio is more dangerous in children. Tests revealed the patient was infected with the same strain identified in London and Jerusalem earlier this year (file photo) Tests at laboratories run by the Global Poio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) revealed that the patient from New York had contracted the same strain identified this year. Some countries—but not the U.S.—still use oral poliovirus vaccine. This uses a live form of the virus which, in rare cases, can be transmitted to others when recipients excrete it. After many infections it can then mutate and become like the more dangerous progenitor strains. GPEI officials said more analysis is underway to determine where else in the world the virus may have spread. They said: “It is vital that all countries, particularly those with a high volume of travel and contact with polio-affected countries and regions, strengthen surveillance in order to quickly detect any introduction of new virus and facilitate a rapid response.” The American polio patient was revealed last month to be a young Jewish man who had not had the three-dose polio vaccine, reports said. He has since been discharged from hospital to a home he shares with his wife and parents. But paralysis from the infection has left him struggling to walk again. It was unclear how he contracted the virus, but the man has not recently traveled abroad, suggesting he likely got it from another unvaccinated person. Ratner, who is also director of pediatric infectious diseases at NYU Langone’s Hassenfel Children’s Hospital, warned that based on the overseas detections: “It’s possible that each of these was a chain where [infection] it happened But it is also possible that there are many independent polios that come from vaccines. “Although, in the US this is unlikely because we don’t use the oral polio vaccine.” Neither London nor Jerusalem have so far confirmed that a polio patient has been admitted to their hospitals. The US has yet to identify a second case. But all three say they’ve detected type 2 VDPV in their wastewater in recent months, suggesting it’s spreading in the community. In Rockland County, the virus was detected in early June – before the first case was reported. But Ratner said that wasn’t “surprising” because it can take weeks for someone with the virus to start suffering symptoms. He added: “I think it suggests that many more people may have been exposed to polio. “There may be a number who were not vaccinated who came in contact with it but did not go on to develop paralytic polio.” Polio is a viral infection that in severe cases can spread to the spinal cord, causing paralysis. About one in ten people who suffer from it die from the disease. Most people who get polio do not show any symptoms of the virus, but one in four will develop flu-like symptoms, such as a sore throat, fever and stomach pain. One in 25 will see their spinal cord become infected, leading to paralysis. Vaccination is the most effective way to prevent the disease, as there are no effective treatments for people who contract it. Children are usually offered a three-dose vaccination course in the United States, with the first vaccine given at two months of age and the last at 18 months of age. They are also given a booster shot between four and six years of age, which is more than 99 percent effective in preventing infection. In recent years and amid the disruption of Covid, the US has fallen behind in vaccination against the disease. CDC data showed that about 92.6 percent of Americans are fully vaccinated against the virus by their second birthday, which is below the WHO’s recommended level of 95 percent to prevent the epidemic. Polio has been eradicated in almost all countries of the world thanks to the vaccination effort. But it is still spreading under the radar in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Polio: Once the most feared disease in America now rare
Polio is a serious viral infection that used to be common around the world. The virus lives in the throat and intestines for up to six weeks, with patients becoming infected more than seven to 10 days before and after the onset of symptoms. But it can spread to the spinal cord causing muscle weakness and paralysis. The virus is more common in infants and young children and occurs in conditions of poor hygiene. How deadly is it? Most people show no signs of infection at all, but about one in 20 people have mild symptoms such as fever, muscle weakness, headache, nausea and vomiting. About one in 50 patients develop severe muscle pain and stiffness in the neck and back. Less than one percent of polio cases result in paralysis, and one in 10 of these results in death. Of those who do develop symptoms, these tend to appear three to 21 days after infection and include:
High temperature Sore throat Headache Abdominal pain Muscles ache Nausea and vomiting
How does it spread? People can get polio through droplets in the air when someone coughs or sneezes, or if they come into contact with the feces of an infected person. This includes food, water, clothes or toys. Are there different strains? There are three strains of “wild” polio, which has been largely eradicated throughout Europe, the Americas, Southeast Asia, and the Western Pacific. Types 2 and 3 have been eliminated thanks to a global mass vaccination campaign, with the last cases detected in 1999 and 2012 respectively. The remaining, type 1, wild poliomyelitis remains endemic in only two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Wild polio has been eliminated in almost all countries of the world thanks to vaccines. But global circulation has created new types of strains known as vaccine-derived polioviruses. These are strains that were originally used in live vaccines, but spilled into the community and evolved to behave more like the wild version. Does polio still exist in the US? The last case of person-to-person transmission in the US was in 1979, which also marked the last wild case of polio. However, there have been several dozen cases of vaccine-derived polio viruses, although they were one-off, with no further transmission. Have I been vaccinated against polio? Americans have been offered the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) since 2000. It is given in four doses, with the first vaccine at the age of two months. It is also given at four, six to 18 months and four to six years of age. Uptake has declined slightly, but remains above 90 percent nationally. There are concerns that vaccine hesitancy has increased during the Covid crisis due to misinformation being spread about vaccinations for this virus and school closures.
