World Polio Day Observed On 24 October

Highlights:

• World Polio Day is celebrated on 24 October to raise awareness for polio vaccination and eradication of Polio.
• The Day was established by Rotary International to commemorate the birth of Jonas Salk,
• He led the first team to develop a vaccine against poliomyelitis.
• The 2021 theme for World Polio Day is “Delivering on a Promise.”
• Polio is a crippling and potentially fatal infectious disease.
• There is no cure, but there are safe and effective vaccines. Polio can be prevented through immunization.
• The Polio vaccine, given multiple times, almost always protects a child for life. 
• Therefore, the strategy to eradicate Polio is based on preventing infection by immunizing every child until transmission stops and the world is polio-free.
• Polio is caused by an RNA virus, where 85% of the infections are paralytic. 
• Poliovirus is most commonly spread in areas where there is poor sanitation.
• The use of the poliovirus vaccine and subsequent widespread use of the oral poliovirus, developed by Albert Sabin, led to the establishment of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) in 1988. 
• As of 2013, GPEI had reduced Polio worldwide by 99%.