Children in London aged one to nine will be offered the polio vaccine. This is because the killer virus has been found 116 times in sewage samples from north, east and central parts of the city. A small number of polioviruses are detected in the UK’s sewage every year, but a number this high is unusual.
The UK Health Secretary Agency (UKHSA) reported that polioviruses has been detected in 19 sewage samples, from boroughs including Camden, Hackney, Haringey, Islington and Waltham Forest.
The urgent immunisation will see up to a million children offered the vaccine, including those whose jabs are already up to date. GPs will contact parents and carers within the next month. Children will be given an inactivated vaccine, which contains a ‘dead’ virus and has no risk of spreading. This jab has been used in the UK since 2004.
You needn’t panic, because the booster programme is just precautionary at this stage. Polio is spread by polioviruses – it travels in the faeces of infected people, so you can catch it through contaminated water. Although the virus has spread within some London communities, so far no cases of polio, or related paralysis, have been reported.
According to the NHS, polio is a serious infection but the chances of getting it in the UK are extremely low. Its symptoms include high temperature, muscle pain, fatigue, headaches and vomiting. On rare occasions it can lead to paralysis but there have been no confirmed cases of polio-caused paralysis in this country since 1984.
Dr Vanessa Saliba, consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA, said: ‘We know the areas in London where the poliovirus is being transmitted have some of the lowest vaccination rates. This is why the virus is spreading in these communities and puts those residents not fully vaccinated at greater risk.
‘It is vital parents ensure their children are fully vaccinated for their age. Following JCVI advice, all children aged one to nine years in London need to have a dose of polio vaccine now – whether it’s an extra booster dose or just to catch up with their routine vaccinations. It will ensure a high level of protection from paralysis. This may also help stop the virus spreading further.’
Dr Kathleen O’Reilly, an expert in polio at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, told the Guardian: ‘News of the booster vaccine against polio will add extra protection to children under ten in London where we now have considerable evidence of poliovirus circulation.
‘The fact that polio has been detected in sewage gives us a critical opportunity to prevent polio disease – the sewage testing and vaccination response is a really worthwhile public health action that I hope will be highly effective.’
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