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What's behind deadly polio outbreak in Congo Republic?

by george-fominyen | Thomson Reuters Foundation
Tuesday, 23 November 2010 17:34 GMT

DAKAR (AlertNet) Â? The first outbreak of polio in a decade in the Republic of Congo has killed more than 150 people since early October, according to the Congolese Red Cross.

The highly infectious disease, which can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours, is caused by a virus that invades the nervous system.

Experts say this outbreak, most of whose victims are adults, is unusual as polio mainly affects children under the age of five.

Â?The disease is much more serious in adults than in children, which may explain the high fatality rates of nearly half of those infected,Â? said Brigitte Toure, the polio specialist for U.N. childrenÂ?s fund UNICEF in west and central Africa.

So what caused this outbreak in Congo?

The virus spread from neighbouring Angola, infecting mostly adults aged between 15 and 25 who have not been immunised fully or at all, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Â?Before 2000 Congo vaccinated a lot of children because it was seeking to eradicate polio, and in the past three years it has been working hard to maintain that,Â? said WHO spokesman Olivier Rosenbauer, adding that at least three doses of the vaccine are necessary for full protection.

Â?There seems to be a lost generation: people who were children 10 years ago and are now young adults who were not immunised and they are now susceptible,Â? he added.

Poor hygiene and sanitation have also contributed to the rapid spread of the virus which is transmitted through the mouth and multiplies in the intestine, according to UNICEF.

Because of a shortage of clean drinking water in some areas of the country, local people have to rely on water from wells and boreholes which are unsafe, especially in the rainy season when latrines can be flooded.

Â?The key message is for people to wash their hands before and after eating, after using the restroom and to drink safe water,Â? UNICEFÂ?s Toure said.

Â?Other countries should not start to immunise adults but they should work on surveillance and monitoring of any cases of paralysis with symptoms related to polio,Â? she added.

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