CHO to hold 2 more rounds of anti-polio immunization

The Davao City Health Office (CHO) is holding two more rounds of anti-polio immunization for three types of poliovirus in February and March.

CHO was prompted to hold another set of vaccination in the extended “Sabayang Patak Kontra Polio” following the reported case of Type 1 poliovirus in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Chief of the CHO Dr. Joy Villafuerte emphasized the need for parents to bring their children to all health centers and other areas which will be identified soon by CHO, to receive the oral polio vaccine.

“We are asking those who had anti-polio 1 and 2, to have again the third immunization,” Villafuerte said.

There are three wild types of poliovirus (WPV) – type 1, type 2, and type 3. According to health officials, people need to be protected against all three types of the virus to prevent polio disease. There are two vaccines used to protect against polio disease, oral polio vaccine and inactivated poliovirus vaccine.

In the previous immunization, the CHO recorded 104% coverage in the October to December Sabayang Patak for Type 2 poliovirus. The third round to complete the October – December immunization is on January 22 to February 2.

Villafuerte, however, said that those children who were immunized during the first three rounds should still be vaccinated in the coming 4th and 5th rounds of immunization in February and March.

Villafuerte clarified the first rounds of immunization only covered the type 2 poliovirus because this was the type of poliovirus discovered in the city in August, last year.

She said the 4th and 5th immunization are necessary precautions considering the distance of the city from ARMM region where another type of poliovirus was reported. CIO