Polio Outbreaks Confirmed in Africa

The journal ScienceDirect recently published a study on vaccine-derived poliovirus serotype 2 outbreaks and response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) 2017–2021.

Published on April 6, 2023, this study revealed previous VDPV serotype 2 outbreaks (cVDPV2) documented outbreaks in the DRC since 2005.

The nine cVDPV2 outbreaks detected during 2005–2012 resulted in 73 paralysis cases.

And from January 2017–December 31, 2021, 19 cVDPV2 outbreaks were detected in DRC, resulting in 235 paralysis cases in 18 of DRC's 26 provinces.

Moreover, the DRC-KAS-3 cVDPV2 outbreak that circulated during 2019–2021 resulted in 101 paralysis cases in 10 provinces and was the largest recorded in DRC.

To notify visitors to the DRC, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reissued a Global Polio Alert - Level 2, Practice Enhanced Precautions on March 22, 2023.

This CDC Travel Alert included the DRC.

Before traveling to any destination listed, the CDC suggests that adults who previously completed the entire polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose of the polio vaccine.

In the U.S., various polio vaccines are available at health clinics and pharmacies, such as United and Market Street in Lubbock, Texas.