World Polio Day 2017

24 October

World Polio Day logo

World Polio Day aims to increase awareness about polio virus and to encourage further actions to reduce it from spreading. The commemoration of the day also highlights the success of global strategies in reducing the spread of the disease.

Polio is a highly infectious disease which targets the nervous system and can cause paralysis.

Facts about polio

  • Polio affects children mainly below the age of five, but immune and partially immune adults can still be affected by the disease.
  • Although the most visible sign of polio is paralysis; only one percent of the effects of the disease is likely to be paralysis.
  • Polio has no symptoms and can spread widely before paralysis is visible. Those affected by polio are often not aware that hey have the disease.
  • It is passed through person to person contact. The disease has been eliminated in most countries in the world. There is no treatment for polio. However, the disease can be prevented through vaccination.
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