NewsDesk @bactiman63

In a follow-up on the polio case in Peru, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) offered more details on the case and timeline:

Poliovirus Image/CDC

Peru notified the PAHO on March 21 of a confirmed case of vaccine-derived poliovirus type 1 (VDPV1). The case is a 16-month-old male, belonging to an indigenous community in the Manseriche district in the Datem del Marañón province of the Loreto department, with no history of vaccination or travel history before the onset of symptoms.

On 27 December 2022, the case went to a district health center due to persistent fever, on 28 December was referred to the Loreto Regional Hospital, and on 29 December presented with paralysis in the lower limbs for which fecal samples were collected that were sent to the regional reference laboratory for polio, the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation – Fiocruz in Brazil.

On 21 March 2023, the Peru National Institute of Health received results from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation – Fiocruz in Brazil confirming the detection of VDPV serotype 1 (VDPV type 1) by real-time PCR. These results were confirmed by nucleotide sequencing of the VP1 region of the viral genome. Additional virological studies are being carried out. The case was in stable condition although continuing to present paralysis in the lower limbs and following the parents’ request for voluntary discharge, traveled to the Nuevo Belén community in the Manseriche district, Datem del Marañón province in the Loreto department. The coverage rates of the third dose of polio vaccine (Polio3) in the Manseriche district in the last 5 years was: 87.4% in 2018, 96.5% in 2019 with, 66.6% in 2020, 33.8% in 2021, and 43.6% in 2022. In 2022, there were no cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) in the Manseriche district, Datem del Marañón province, in the Loreto department; however, 8 cases of Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS) were reported in people in the 18-60 age group. In 2023, one GBS case has been reported in a 50-year-old adult (5). In the last 4 years Polio3 vaccination coverage in Peru has been <95%, with coverage below 80% reported in: 2020 (71.58%) and 2021 (78.77%). Of the 1,874 districts of the country, 840 (45%) report coverage with Polio3 <80%.