New polio case reported in Lakki Marwat, rising tally to 19
The case involves a five-month-old child from Union Council Sulemankhel
ISLAMABAD (APP) - The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) has confirmed a new case of polio from District Lakki Marwat in South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The case involves a five-month-old child from Union Council Sulemankhel.
This is the 12th polio case reported from the KP this year, bringing the total number of polio cases in Pakistan in 2025 to nineteen.
The continued detection of polio cases highlights the ongoing threat to children, especially in areas with low vaccine acceptance.
It is crucial for communities to understand that repeated vaccination is essential to protect every child against poliovirus.
Multiple doses are needed to build and maintain immunity. Every unvaccinated child remains at risk and may contribute to further transmission of the virus.
Polio is a highly infectious and incurable disease that can cause lifelong paralysis. The only effective protection is through repeated doses of the oral polio vaccine (OPV) for every child under five during each campaign, along with the timely completion of all essential immunizations.
Despite significant improvements in the quality of polio vaccination campaigns nationwide, the southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remain a key area of concern due to restricted access, lack of female vaccinators and operational challenges in conducting house-to-house vaccination.
