Update: Polio this week – As of 17 April 2013
Global Polio Eradication Initiative
http://www.polioeradication.org/Dataandmonitoring/Poliothisweek.aspx

[Editor’s extract and bolded text]
– It has been 12 months since Asia reported its last case due to wild poliovirus type 3 (WPV3). The last case on the continent occurred on 18 April 2012 in Khyber Agency, Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA), Pakistan. Globally, WPV3 transmission is at its lowest levels ever recorded. Over the past six months, only one case due to this strain was reported worldwide (from Yobe, Nigeria, with onset of paralysis on 10 November 2012).
– A Global Vaccine Summit will be held on 24-25 April in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), hosted by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Bill Gates and the UN General-Secretary. The Summit will endorse the critical role that vaccines and immunization play in saving lives and protecting children from preventable diseases such as polio. The Summit is held during World Immunization Week and will continue the momentum of the Decade of Vaccines – a vision and commitment to reach all people with the vaccines they need.

Afghanistan
– One new circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) case was reported in the past week, bringing the total number of cVDPV2 cases in 2013 to three. It is the most recent cVDPV2 case in the country, and had onset of paralysis on 13 March (from Kandahar).

Nigeria
– One new WPV case was reported in the past week (WPV1 from Yobe, onset of paralysis on 5 March), bringing the total number of WPV cases for 2013 to 12. This is the most recent WPV case in the country.

Horn of Africa
– No new cases were reported in the past week. The most recent case was a cVDPV2 case from Somalia, with onset of paralysis on 9 January 2013.
– Outbreak response is continuing in various parts of the Horn of Africa, in response to the ongoing cVDPV2 outbreak in south-central Somalia. Somalia conducted subnational activities on 26-29 March, and South Sudan conducted campaigns on 19-22 March. Further activities are planned in the second half of April.
– Outcomes from a recently-conducted surveillance review in high-risk areas of Somalia indicate overall good surveillance. Subnational gaps in surveillance remain in Mogadishu and inaccessible areas of south-central Somalia and undetected circulation in those areas cannot be ruled out.
– Recommendations for further strengthening subnational surveillance were put forward, including activating a number of additional surveillance sites.
-Recognizing the risks associated with the cVDPV2 in south-central Somalia, an emergency action plan for this area is being implemented. Strategies are focusing on further boosting population immunity levels in accessible, polio-free areas of Somalia, and setting up vaccination posts in areas bordering inaccessible areas to immunize all populations entering/leaving such areas (including targeting older age groups). Assessments of high-risk areas and populations continue to be conducted, which help drive strategic approaches such as mapping chronic conflict-areas and major population movement routes. Local-level access negotiations have intensified, to increase access to populations in inaccessible areas.
– As a result of these efforts, access to populations is being achieved for the first time in three years in key areas of south-central Somalia in 2013.
– In border areas with Kenya (on both sides of the border), efforts are also focusing on strengthening population immunity levels to minimize the risk and consequences of further international spread of the outbreak.
– The Horn of Africa TAG is scheduled to meet on 30 April to 1 May in Nairobi, Kenya, to review the status of polio eradication activities and impact in the region.