After poliovirus was found in London sewage, the NHS has begun to roll out additional polio boosters for 1 to 9 year olds to help ensure the virus doesn't find a foothold in the UK.

 

Children aged 1 to 9 in London are now being offered the polio vaccine after shocking news that traces of poliovirus were found in the sewage of London. Between February and May 2022, an alarming level of polio was found in London Beckton Sewage Treatment Works and the UKHSA has declared a national incident because of it. However, the amount of children being vaccinated against polio in London is below the UK average and this may be one of the causes of the virus spreading more in London as well as a denser population compared to the rest of the country. The NHS programme is focusing first on North and East London, where the uptake is the lowest and the highest amounts of poliovirus was found. 1 to 9 year olds can be given the vaccine at general practices as well as 40 other sites around the cities with a mix of book and walk-in centres. The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan,  has "urged" parents to let their children take the vaccine and says that "vaccination centres will play a critical role" in stopping the spread of polio.

 

Poliovirus is a serious infectious disease which is spread through human waste, coughs and sneezes. Most people do not experience symptoms when they catch polio however some people may experience flu-like symptoms. However, very rarely it can lead to permanent paralysis due to polio sometimes affecting the nerves, brain and muscles of the body. The chances of paralysis are approximately 1 in 200 and of those who are paralysed, 5-10% die due to their breathing muscles not working properly.

 

However, the chances of catching polio is very unlikely in the UK and most of the world due to mass vaccinations against it as mentioned before. Therefore, after traces of polio were found in the sewage around London, the NHS are offering vaccinations to young children as they are more likely to spread it due to a lack of good hygiene. Jane Clegg, the Chief Nurse in London for the NHS said "We’re committed to doing all we can to protect children and those living in London from the threat of polio". Most parents are given the option of giving their children the polio vaccine when they are 8, 12 and 16 weeks old as well as when they are 3 years old and finally when they are 14 years old through the NHS. Consequently, so far there has been no polio cases found in London or the rest of the UK since 1984 and these additional vaccinations are more of a precaution then anything.

 

When the World Health Assembly gathered in 1988, a target was made for the eradication of polio through mass vaccination. Since this target was set, a hugely successful programme by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has led to polio case numbers falling by 99% where only 6 cases were recorded in 2021. This could potentially be only the second human virus which would have been fully eradicated, after the eradication of smallpox in 1980. These vaccines are incredibly important due to there being no current cure for polio and these vaccines could protect a person for their entire life from poliovirus.

 

(All statistics in this article are from the NHS and World Health Organisation websites'.)