WHO reported that Afghanistan became the first country in the world to use the new bivalent oral polio vaccine (bOPV) recommended by the Advisory Committee on Poliomyelitis Eradication. The committee, the global technical advisory body of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, describes the new vaccine “as a critical tool to eradicate polio, (which) can provide the optimal concurrent protection needed by young children against both surviving serotypes (types 1 and 3) of the paralysing virus. This will vastly simplify the logistics of vaccination in the conflict-affected parts of this country. This sub-national immunization campaign, from 15-17 December, will deliver bOPV to 2.8 million children under five in the Southern, South-Eastern and Eastern Regions of Afghanistan.”

WHO said that bOPV “allows countries to simplify vaccine logistics and to optimize protection using a mix of the available polio vaccines according to local needs,” noting that in southern Afghanistan, where access to children can be limited depending on the security situation, using bOPV helps maximise the impact of each contact with a child.

WHO noted that most of Afghanistan is polio-free, with 28 out of the 31 children paralysed by polio this year coming from 13 highly insecure districts (of 329 districts in the country). In 2009, polio eradication efforts in Afghanistan have focused on improving operations and creating a safe environment for vaccination teams.

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2009/polio_afghanistan_20091215/en/index.html