Poliovirus detected in London sewage, national incident declared | Rob Harris
Britain’s polio-free status could be at risk after routine sewage testing found the virus has returned and is spreading for the first time in nearly 40 years.
Health experts believe the virus was probably imported from an individual who had recently been given an oral polio vaccine containing live virus, potentially in Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan, which was then shed in faeces, entering London’s sewerage system. Wild polioviruses have been eradicated in most parts of the world except in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where they remain endemic.The vaccine-derived poliovirus - which originates from live attenuated polioviruses contained in oral polio vaccine - still trigger outbreaks, most recently in Ukraine and Israel.“Vaccine-derived poliovirus is rare and the risk to the public overall is extremely low,” Vanessa Saliba, consultant epidemiologist at the agency, said.
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