WHO: polio threatens thousands of unvaccinated children in Gaza Strip
Without immediate action, polio will infect thousands of unvaccinated children in Gaza – as warned by World Health Organisation Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, TASS reports
The WHO Director-General noted that no cases of polio have been reported in the enclave yet. “But in the absence of immediate measures, the infection will overtake thousands of still unvaccinated children,” he expressed confidence.
According to him, polio vaccination coverage for children in Gaza has plummeted from 99 percent to 86 percent in the nine months of conflict. “Before the conflict, vaccination coverage was 99 percent. By now, this figure has dropped sharply to 86 percent, threatening the emergence of populations of unvaccinated children favorable for the circulation of the virus,” said the WHO Director General.
