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#Health, #Wellness & #Happiness #Travel to #Greece
Wild poliovirus in 2015 - Global Total: 37 (148)
- Global WPV1: 37 (148)
- Global WPV3: 0 (0)Endemic: 37 (131)
- Afghanistan: 8 (8)
- Nigeria: 0 (6)
- Pakistan: 29 (117)Data as of 27
August 2015. Numbers in brackets represent data this time in 2014.
The monthly statement from Polio Oversight Board chair Dr Tom Frieden highlights the importance of continued commitment to stopping wild poliovirus in Nigeria and of stopping all outbreaks of circulating vaccine derived poliovirus.
The goal of polio eradication is feasible because polio viruses
- only infect humans, without an intermediate host
- an effective and inexpensive vaccine is available;
- immunity lasts for life; and
- polio viruses only survive in the environment for a very short time
Greek CDC, (HCDCP )
E-bulletin on Polio,
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To keep Europe and other regions polio-free, WHO launched the surveillance of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) in all individuals <15 years old and for all age groups when polio is suspected.
Surveillance and investigation of all AFP cases increases the system’s sensitivity in order to achieve early detection of even rare cases, detect imports of wild virus from endemic countries, and identify vaccine-associated cases.
In the AFP surveillance network, 52 doctors (neurologists, pediatricians and intensive care unit doctors) participate from 24 hospitals across Greece.
AFP cases in children <15 years old are reported directly to the Department of Epidemiological Surveillance and Intervention of the Greek CDC, (HCDCP), which informs the WHO regional office for Europe via the Internet.
Moreover, to enhance surveillance, a Greek CDC employee communicates on a weekly basis with participating physicians and actively records new cases or confirms the absence of cases.
Case investigation includes demographic, clinical and epidemiological data, vaccination coverage data and the collection and dispatch of two appropriate fecal samples within 14 days of the onset of paralysis and at least 24 h apart. The laboratory investigation is performed at the national reference laboratory for enteroviruses/polioviruses, the Greek Pasteur Institute, which is the only WHO reference laboratory in Greece. To complete surveillance, it is critical to have a follow-up examination of the patient, 60–90 days after the onset of paralysis, and to fill in a notification form
The Pakistani government says it will set up mandatory immunization points at airports and border crossings to help stop its polio outbreak from spreading.
It comes after a World Health Organisation warning that polio has re-emerged as a public health emergency.
Pakistan has seen a rise in the disease, with immunisation campaigns often disrupted by Taliban militants.
The virus currently affects 10 countries worldwide, and is endemic in three countries, including Pakistan.
Polio mainly affects children under five years old.
For Polio threats in #Greece due to the increased #refugees influx and what the Greek CDC is doing on that, visit our Greek to me ! Special Page on https://www.greek2m.org/polio-threat-alarm
Posted by Greek to me , greek2m.org on Sunday, October 25, 2015
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- Afghanistan
- Cameroon
- Equatorial Guinea
- Ethiopia
- Iraq
- Israel
- Nigeria
- Pakistan
- Somalia
- Syria
Source: WHO
In its recommendation, the WHO said that all residents of Pakistan or long-term visitors should get a dose of the vaccine at least four weeks before international travel.
In case of urgent travel, it says, the vaccine should still be given just before departure.
In its recommendation, the WHO said that all residents of Pakistan or long-term visitors should get a dose of the vaccine at least four weeks before international travel.
In case of urgent travel, it says, the vaccine should still be given just before departure.
May 2014: Greek CDC to Embassies and Ambassadors
The Greek CDC has informed scientifically, on the Global Travel Health Principles the ambassadors of countries where polio is endemic for the need to vaccinate their citizens in order to obtain visa to enter Greece. The Greek CDC ( HCDCP) also issues guidelines on vaccination for travelers to and from countries considered high risk on Poliovirus
The Greek CDC has informed scientifically, on the Global Travel Health Principles the ambassadors of countries where polio is endemic for the need to vaccinate their citizens in order to obtain visa to enter Greece. The Greek CDC ( HCDCP) also issues guidelines on vaccination for travelers to and from countries considered high risk on Poliovirus
Greece on Polio : On the Alert since Summer 2013
Greece on Polio : On the Alert since Summer 2013
In Greece, AFP surveillance is crucial because of particular characteristics such as
- the arrival of immigrants and refugees from endemic areas,
- the existence of specific population groups with low vaccination coverage, such as the Roma, and
- the proximity to countries that were endemic until recently or of which the health system has collapsed.
What the Greek CDC does for Polio, as Greece is an error Entry Point
What the Greek CDC does for Polio, as Greece is an error Entry Point
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Greek CDC, (HCDCP), May 8, 2014
Greece is to begin vaccinating young refugees from Syria against polio, by being the primary country of the West that faces the Urgent need to Guard the Entry Point that the infectious disease, which was officially wiped out more than a decade ago, may be reintroduced to the country by people fleeing the war-torn state.
All Syrians under the age of 18 would receive vaccines at reception centers due to the near collapse of the health system in their country
Medical checks at reception centers are being stepped up in general and that about 90 people have been hired to provide assistance.
- Due to the special peculiarities of our country, such as the
immigration and the refugees inflow from areas as Pakistan, Afghanistan , Nigeria and recently Syria, where polio is endemic" the Greek CDC announced,
- "Surveillance on Poliovirus has become more than ever urgent, as it is
- the urgent need for the strengthening of immunization programs in populations with low vaccination coverage, as the Roma, gypsies and illicit immigrants .
The Greek CDC (HCDCP) has maximised the national Alertness and Preparedness efforts to prevent an outbreak of polio in Greece.
- Epidemiological , laboratory and environmental surveillance of poliovirus have been strengthened by the Greek CDC on parallell with the
- intensification of immunization status monitoring of infants, children , adolescents and adults, and the completion of their vaccination against polio, in both the general population and the special populations with low vaccination coverage, such as
- gypsies ,
- mobile populations ,
- migrants ,
- refugees and
- asylum seekers
Polio News
April 2014, Greek to me !
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Greece's own Armagedon... is in the air
By Polio risk looming over Europe, Greece is fetching the unbearable burden of Protecting the Western world's Health Safety, in a more than tragic Armagedon scenario Greek to me ! October 2013
May 14, 2014, NYT
A W.H.O. recommendation that travelers not leave Pakistan without a polio vaccination certificate has caused confusion.
Doctors, clinics and hospitals have been inundated with inquiries. The association of travel agents has reported “panic” among air travel customers.
“It’s very worrisome,” said Mohammad Akbar Khan, a passenger at the Karachi airport on Thursday, as his family clustered around a desk on the departures concourse normally used to immunize infants. “We just found out about this on the news, and we’re trying to find out what to do.”
The government, which is scrambling to meet the W.H.O. requirement, says it needs two weeks to make arrangements at airports and buy more vaccines. But to most Pakistanis, it is a jolting reminder of the gravity of a crisis that has been quietly building for years, and which is now, according to the W.H.O., spilling into other countries, threatening to undo decades of efforts to eradicate polio across the globe. More, by NYT, MAY 10, 2014