The polio virus has been detected in New York City sewage, as health officials say it is quietly spreading among unvaccinated people.
According to the health departments of the city and the state of New York, the presence of the virus in wastewater indicates a potential for local circulation.
Although the disease hasn’t been seen in the US for a decade, a New Yorker was paralyzed a few weeks ago with a polio infection in Rockland County, north of the city.
State health commissioner Dr Mary T Bassett said the detection of polio virus in municipal wastewater samples was alarming but not surprising, as officials urged residents to get vaccinated. room.
In a statement, the city’s health commissioner, Dr Ashwin Vasan, said: “Poliosis is completely preventable and its reappearance should be a call to action for all. we.
“The risk to New Yorkers is real but the prevention is simple – get vaccinated against polio.”
Wastewater samples collected in June in both Rockland and neighboring Orange County were found to contain the virus.
The latest developments in New York come shortly after Health officials in the UK declare a national incident after discovering traces of polio during a sewage test in London.
Read more:
What is polio and have people in the UK been vaccinated against it?
Children aged one to nine in London are given a dose of polio vaccine
Polio is a contagious virus that can be transmitted through coughs and sneezes, but also through food, water, or objects that have been contaminated with the feces of an infected person.
It mainly affects children under the age of five, although it can also affect unvaccinated adults.
Polio was once one of the nation’s most feared diseases, with outbreaks every year leaving thousands of cases of polio, but a vaccine has been available since 1955 with strong protection.
Most people infected with polio have no symptoms but can still pass the virus on to others for days or weeks.
All students in New York are required to be vaccinated against polio, but Rockland and Orange counties are known to be centers of vaccine resistance.
