Mass polio vaccination campaign to continue in Gaza after virus detected in wastewater samples
A mass polio vaccination campaign is set to continue in Gaza after the virus was recently detected in wastewater samples.
The campaign aims to vaccinate more than 591,000 children in Gaza under 10 years old between Saturday and Feb. 26, the World Health Organization announced.
Efforts will be led by the Palestinian Ministry of Health and will be supported by the WHO, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and other partners, the global health agency said Wednesday.
Polio vaccinations wrap up in Gaza as officials try to inoculate 90% of children under age 10
Children are receiving two drops of novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2), which has been used for outbreak response under the WHO's Emergency Use Listing Procedure (EUL) approval since March 2021. A second dose is typically given four weeks after the first.
The WHO coordinated two previous mass vaccination rounds in September and October 2024, saying it reached 95% of its target population in Gaza. The current campaign will aim to reach all children under age 10, including those previously missed to help close any immunity gaps, the WHO said.
At least 7,000 children were missed during the second vaccination round in October due to hostilities in the Israel-Hamas war and areas where humanitarian pauses for vaccination were not guaranteed, the WHO said.
"As poliovirus is found to remain in the environment, additional vaccination efforts are needed to reach every child and strengthen population immunity," the WHO said in a press release. "The presence of the virus still poses a risk to children with low or no immunity, in Gaza and throughout the region."
The WHO and its partners also plan to carry out another mass polio vaccination in April of this year, the agency said.
In mid-August 2024, the Palestinian Ministry of Health reported the first case of polio in 25 years in a 10-month-old child who had not been vaccinated and became paralyzed, according to the WHO. Doctors suspected polio after symptoms resembled the virus, which was confirmed in tests conducted in Amman, the capital of Jordan, the agency said.
Public health experts previously told ABC News they believe the true number of polio cases may have been higher, with many cases having gone undetected.
Although no additional cases have been reported, wastewater samples collected in Deir al Balah in central Gaza and Khan Younis in southern Gaza in December 2024 and January, respectively, confirm polio transmission, according to the WHO.
MORE: What to know about the polio vaccine and why most people aren't at risk of infection
The polio strain detected in the recent wastewater samples is genetically linked to the sample first detected in Gaza in July 2024.
The WHO estimates that in 2022, polio vaccination coverage, conducted through routine immunization, was at 99%.
However, since the outbreak of the war following Hamas' terror attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, this percentage has fallen. According to the latest WHO-UNICEF routine immunization report, the number is estimated to be at 89% in 2023 due to the number of newborns not vaccinated.
Polio largely affects children under age 5 and can lead to paralysis or death. There are about 341,000 children under the age of five in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.
Mass polio vaccination campaign to continue in Gaza after virus detected in wastewater samples originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Several Psychiatric Disorders Share The Same Root Cause, Study Finds
Researchers recently discovered that eight different psychiatric conditions share a common genetic basis. A study published this year pinpointed specific variants among those shared genes and uncovered how they behave during brain development. The US team found that many of these variants remain active for extended periods, potentially influencing multiple developmental stages – and offering new targets for treatments that could address several disorders at once. "The proteins produced by these genes are also highly connected to other proteins," explains University of North Carolina geneticist Hyejung Won. "Changes to these proteins in particular could ripple through the network, potentially causing widespread effects on the brain." In 2019 an international team of researchers first identified 109 genes that were linked in different combinations with eight psychiatric disorders, including autism, ADHD, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, Tourette syndrome, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and anorexia. This may explain why these conditions often co-occur – for example up to 70 percent of individuals diagnosed with autism or ADHD have the other too – and why they frequently cluster in families. Each of these eight conditions also has gene differences that are unique to them individually, so Won and team compared the unique genes with those shared between the disorders. They took almost 18,000 variations of the shared and unique genes involved and put them into the precursor cells that become our neurons to see how they could impact gene expression in these cells during human development. This allowed the researchers to identify 683 genetic variants that impacted gene regulation and to further explore them in neurons from developing mice. Genetic variants behind multiple seemingly unrelated traits, or in this case conditions, are called pleiotropic. The pleiotropic variants were involved in many more protein-to-protein interactions than the gene variants unique to specific psychological conditions, and they were active across more types of brain cells. Pleiotropic variants were also involved in regulatory mechanisms that impact multiple stages of brain development. The ability of these genes to impact cascades and networks of processes, such as gene regulation, could explain why the same variants can contribute to different conditions. "Pleiotropy was traditionally viewed as a challenge because it complicates the classification of psychiatric disorders," says Won. "However, if we can understand the genetic basis of pleiotropy, it might allow us to develop treatments targeting these shared genetic factors, which could then help treat multiple psychiatric disorders with a common therapy." This would be a very useful strategy given the World Health Organization estimates 1 in 8 people (almost 1 billion in total) live with some form of psychiatric condition. This research was published in Cell. An earlier version of this article was first published in February 2025. New Smart Dental Floss Can Detect Your Stress From Saliva Gluten Intolerance vs Celiac Disease: Experts Reveal The Key Differences Weight-Loss Drugs Like Ozempic Can Leave Lasting Damage in Your Mouth
San Francisco Chronicle
13 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Palestinians say Israel and its allies fired on crowd near Gaza aid site. Hospital says 6 killed
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Palestinians say Israeli forces and allied local gunmen fired toward a crowd heading to an Israeli- and U.S.-supported food distribution center in the Gaza Strip early Monday. Gaza's Health Ministry said six people were killed. The gunmen appeared to be allied with the Israeli military, operating in close proximity to troops and retreating into an Israeli military zone in the southern city of Rafah after the crowd hurled stones at them, witnesses said. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israel recently acknowledged supporting local armed groups opposed to Hamas. The latest in a string of shootings It was the latest in a number of shootings that have killed at least 127 people and wounded hundreds since the rollout of a new food distribution system, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Israel and the United States say the new system is designed to circumvent Hamas, but it has been rejected by the U.N. and major aid groups. Experts have meanwhile warned that Israel's blockade and its ongoing military campaign have put Gaza at risk of famine. Palestinians say Israeli forces have repeatedly fired toward crowds heading to the food centers since they opened last month. In previous instances, the Israeli military has said it fired warning shots at people who approached its forces near the centers, which are in military zones off limits to independent media. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the Israeli- and U.S.-supported private contractor running the sites, says there has been no violence in or around the centers themselves. But GHF repeatedly warns would-be food recipients that stepping off the road designated by the military for people to reach the centers represents 'a great danger.' It paused delivery at its three distribution sites last week to hold discussions with the military about improving safety on the routes. GHF closed the Rafah site on Monday due to the 'chaos of the crowds,' according to a Facebook site associated with the group. A GHF spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Heba Joda, who was in the crowd Monday, said gunfire broke out at a roundabout where previous shootings have occurred, around a kilometer (half a mile) from the aid site. She said the shots came from the 'dangerous zone' where Israeli troops and their allies are stationed. She said she saw men from a local militia led by Yasser Abu Shabab trying to organize the crowds into lines on the road. When people pushed forward, the gunmen opened fire. People then hurled stones at them, forcing them to withdraw toward the Israeli positions, she said. The Abu Shabab group, which calls itself the Popular Forces, says it is guarding the surroundings of the GHF centers in southern Gaza. Aid workers say it has a long history of looting U.N. aid trucks. GHF has said it does not work with the Abu Shabab group. Hussein Shamimi, who was also in the crowd, said his 14-year-old cousin was among those killed. 'There was an ambush … the Israelis from one side and Abu Shabab from another,' he said. Mohamed Kabaga, a Palestinian displaced from northern Gaza, said he saw masked men firing toward the crowds after trying to organize them. 'They fired at us directly,' he said while being treated at Nasser Hospital, in the nearby city of Khan Younis. He had been shot in the neck, as were three other people seen by an Associated Press journalist at the hospital. Kabaga said he saw around 50 masked men with 4x4 vehicles in the area around the roundabout, close to Israeli military lines. "We didn't receive anything,' he said. 'They shot us.' Nasser Hospital said several men had been shot in the upper body, including some in the head. Zaher al-Waheidi, head of the Health Ministry's records department, said six people were killed and more than 99 wounded, some of them at another GHF center in central Gaza. A new aid system marred by controversy and violence Israel has demanded GHF replace the U.N.-run system that has distributed food, medicine and other supplies to Palestinians since the war began. Israel accuses Hamas of siphoning off aid and using it to fund militant activities, but U.N. officials say there is no evidence of any systematic diversion. The U.N. and other humanitarian groups have rejected the GHF system. It says the mechanism is incapable of meeting Gaza's huge demands and that it is being used for Israel's military purposes, including its goal to move Gaza's entire population of more than 2 million people to the south of the territory around the food centers. Throughout the war, the U.N.-led network has delivered supplies at hundreds of distribution points around Gaza, meaning large crowds haven't had to trek for hours past Israeli troops to receive aid. Israel sealed off Gaza from all food, medicine and fuel at the beginning of March, shortly before it ended a ceasefire with Hamas. It began allowing small amounts of aid in last month, but U.N. agencies say they have struggled to deliver it because of Israeli restrictions, the breakdown of law and order and widespread looting. The 20-month war rages on The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. They are still holding 55 hostages, more than half of them believed to be dead, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israel's military campaign has killed over 54,900 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which has said women and children make up most of the dead. It does not say how many of those killed were civilians or combatants. The war has destroyed vast areas of Gaza, displaced some 90% of the population and left the territory almost completely reliant on international aid. Hamas has said it will only release the remaining hostages in return for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal. Israel says it will continue the war until all the captives are returned and Hamas is defeated or disarmed and sent into exile. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that even then, Israel will maintain open-ended control over Gaza and facilitate what he refers to as the voluntary emigration of much of its population to other countries, a plan rejected by most of the international community, including the Palestinians, who view it as a blueprint for their forcible expulsion. ___ Magdy reported from Cairo. ___
News24
16 hours ago
- News24
SAMA urges caution as flu cases surge and new COVID-19 variant emerges
With flu season in full swing, health professionals are advising South Africans to be more cautious due to an increase in flu cases and the appearance of NB. 1.8.1. NB 1.8.1 is an unusual Covid-19 Omicron subvariant that is spreading rapidly in numerous countries. Speaking in an interview with Newzroom Afrika about the matter, Dr Vusumuzi Mzukwa, chairperson of the South African Medical Association (SAMA), clarified that although there's yet no official call to reinstate masks, precautions are still crucial. 'We have not yet made a call for wearing of masks but what we are doing is cautioning South African's that there's a new variant,' he said. Furthermore, Mzukwa added that the virus still exists in endemic form even if it is no longer dominant. 'It is in existence, but in very low numbers.' According to Mzukwa the World Health Organisation (WHO) has designated NB. 1.8.1 as a variant currently under observation globally as variants continue to evolve. 'We're looking at its spread, its severity, but it's early days. There's nothing to worry about at the moment,' he clarified. Read more | Presiding judge at Senzo Meyiwa's murder trial causes uproar after racial remarks spark controversy He described the common symptoms of contemporary infections as follows: 'You get a sore throat, headaches, fatigue, muscle pains. Some gastrointestinal symptoms like diarrhoea and vomiting.' Read more | Brace yourself | South African Weather Services issues warning on cold front this weekend He concluded by reminding the public that masks are not just for COVID but for precautionary measures of infectious flu. 'Masks were not only meant for COVID. They were also meant for the flu, if you've got flu symptoms, you protect other people in the workplace and the community.'
