Passport Health logo
Find a Clinic:
Vaccinations|Find a Travel Clinic|Advice
  • Home
    • About
        • Company History
        • Executive Team
        • Careers
        • Contact Us
        • Customer Feedback
        • FAQ
        • Media Kit
        • Mission Statement
        • Privacy Policy
    • Blogs
      • Main
      • Employer Solutions
      • Passports and Visas
    • Close
  • Destination Advice
    • Top Destinations
        • COVID-19 Testing
        • Domestic COVID-19 Restrictions
        • International COVID-19 Restrictions
        • Fit to Fly
        • Brazil
        • China
        • Costa Rica
        • India
        • Kenya
        • Peru
        • Philippines
        • South Africa
        • Thailand
        • Vietnam
    • Destination Advice
        • Tips and recommendations for healthy travel to any destination:

          • Afghanistan
          • Albania
          • Algeria
          • American Samoa
          • Andorra
          • Angola
          • Anguilla
          • Antarctica
          • Antigua and Barbuda
          • Argentina
          • Armenia
          • Aruba
          • Australia
          • Austria
          • Azerbaijan
          • Azores
          • Bahamas
          • Bahrain
          • Balearics
          • Bangladesh
          • Barbados
          • Belarus
          • Belgium
          • Belize
          • Benin
          • Bermuda
          • Bhutan
          • Bolivia
          • Bonaire
          • Bora Bora
          • Bosnia
          • Botswana
          • Brazil
          • British Virgin Islands
          • Brunei
          • Bulgaria
          • Burkina Faso
          • Burma
          • Burundi
          • Cambodia
          • Cameroon
          • Canada
          • Canary Islands
          • Cape Verde
          • Cayman Islands
          • Central African Republic
          • Chad
          • Chile
          • China
          • Christmas Island
          • Cocos (Keeling) Islands
          • Colombia
          • Comoros
          • Cook Islands
          • Costa Rica
          • Cote d'Ivoire
          • Croatia
          • Cuba
          • Curacao
          • Cyprus
          • Czechia
          • Democratic Republic of the Congo
          • Denmark
          • Djibouti
          • Dominica
          • Dominican Republic
          • East Timor
          • Easter Island
          • Ecuador
          • Egypt
          • El Salvador
          • Equatorial Guinea
          • Eritrea
          • Estonia
          • Ethiopia
          • Falkland Islands
          • Faroe Islands
          • Fiji
          • Finland
          • France
          • French Guiana
          • French Polynesia
          • Gabon
          • Gambia
          • Georgia
          • Germany
          • Ghana
          • Gibraltar
          • Greece
          • Greenland
          • Grenada
          • Guadeloupe
          • Guam
          • Guatemala
          • Guinea
          • Guinea-Bissau
          • Guyana
          • Haiti
          • Hawaii
          • Honduras
          • Hong Kong
          • Hungary
          • Ibiza
          • Iceland
          • India
          • Indonesia
          • Iran
          • Iraq
          • Ireland
          • Israel
          • Italy
          • Jamaica
          • Japan
          • Jordan
          • Kazakhstan
          • Kenya
          • Kiribati
          • Kosovo
          • Kuwait
          • Kyrgyzstan
          • Laos
          • Latvia
          • Lebanon
          • Lesotho
          • Liberia
          • Libya
          • Liechtenstein
          • Lithuania
          • Luxembourg
          • Macau
          • Macedonia
          • Madagascar
          • Madeira Islands
          • Malawi
          • Malaysia
          • Maldives
          • Mali
          • Malta
          • Marshall Islands
          • Martinique
          • Mauritania
          • Mauritius
          • Mayotte
          • Mexico
          • Micronesia
          • Moldova
          • Monaco
          • Mongolia
          • Montenegro
          • Montserrat
          • Morocco
          • Mozambique
          • Namibia
          • Nauru
          • Nepal
          • Netherlands
          • New Caledonia
          • New Zealand
          • Nicaragua
          • Niger
          • Nigeria
          • Niue
          • Norfolk Island
          • North Korea
          • Northern Marianas
          • Norway
          • Oman
          • Pakistan
          • Palau
          • Palestinian Territories
          • Panama
          • Papua New Guinea
          • Paraguay
          • Peru
          • Philippines
          • Pitcairn Islands
          • Poland
          • Portugal
          • Puerto Rico
          • Qatar
          • Republic of the Congo
          • Réunion
          • Romania
          • Russia
          • Rwanda
          • Saba
          • St. Barthelemy
          • Saint Helena
          • St. Kitts and Nevis
          • St. Lucia
          • Saint Martin
          • St. Pierre-et-Miquelon
          • St. Vincent and the Grenadines
          • Samoa
          • San Marino
          • Sao Tome and Principe
          • Saudi Arabia
          • Senegal
          • Serbia
          • Seychelles
          • Sierra Leone
          • Singapore
          • Sint Eustatius
          • Slovakia
          • Slovenia
          • Solomon Islands
          • Somalia
          • South Africa
          • South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands
          • South Korea
          • South Sudan
          • Spain
          • Sri Lanka
          • Sudan
          • Suriname
          • Swaziland
          • Sweden
          • Switzerland
          • Syria
          • Tahiti
          • Taiwan
          • Tajikistan
          • Tanzania
          • Thailand
          • Togo
          • Tokelau
          • Tonga
          • Trinidad and Tobago
          • Tunisia
          • Turkey
          • Turkmenistan
          • Turks and Caicos Islands
          • Tuvalu
          • U.S. Virgin Islands
          • Uganda
          • Ukraine
          • United Arab Emirates
          • United Kingdom
          • United States
          • Uruguay
          • Uzbekistan
          • Vanuatu
          • Vatican
          • Venezuela
          • Vietnam
          • Wake Island
          • Western Sahara
          • Yemen
          • Zambia
          • Zimbabwe
    • Close
  • Travel Medicine
    • Travel Medical Services
        • Vaccines for Travel
        • Travel Health Consulting
        • Travelers’ Diarrhea Medicine
        • Dengue Fever Prevention
        • Malaria Medication
        • Chikungunya Prevention
        • Zika Virus Prevention
        • Coronavirus
        • Ebola Virus
        • Travel Health Alerts
    • Additional Travel Services
      • Travel Physicals
      • Motion Sickness Medicine
      • Travel Insurance
      • Physician Referral Program
      • Online Store
    • Close
  • Vaccines
    • Overview
        • Anthrax
        • Chickenpox
        • Cholera
        • Hepatitis A
        • Hepatitis B
        • Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
        • Japanese Encephalitis
        • Malaria Information
        • Measles – Mumps – Rubella (MMR)
        • Meningitis
        • Pneumonia
        • Polio
        • Rabies
        • Shingles
        • Tetanus-Diphtheria-Pertussis
        • Typhoid
        • Yellow Fever
    • Influenza (The Flu)
        • Learn more about your flu vaccine options

          • Flublok®: Egg Free, Cell Based
          • High Dose
          • Quadrivalent
    • Routine Tests
      • COVID-19 Testing
      • TB Tests
      • Titer Testing
    • Routine Vaccinations
      • Overview
    • Close
  • COVID-19
    • COVID-19 Services
      • COVID-19 Testing
      • COVID-19 Domestic Restrictions
      • COVID-19 International Restrictions
      • COVID-19 Vaccine
      • Fit to Fly
      • Fit for Duty
    • Close
  • For Employers
    • Corporate Wellness Solutions
      • COVID-19 Services
      • Occupational Vaccines
      • Onsite Flu Clinics
      • Onsite Biometric Screenings
      • Employee Wellness
      • Employment Physicals
    • Corporate Travel Solutions
      • Travel Medicine and Vaccinations
      • Passport and Visa Services
      • Pre-Deployment Exams
    • Close
  • Online Store
    • Passport Health Store
      • COVID-19 Protection Kit
      • Travelers’ Diarrhea Kits
      • Mosquito Repellents
    • Close
  • Locations
      • United States Map for Locations New Jersey Massachusetts Oregon Nevada South Dakota Montana Wisconsin California Kansas North Dakota Idaho Illinois Michigan Missouri Utah Indiana Louisiana Iowa Florida Georgia Washington Tennessee Alabama Mississippi Arkansas Arizona North Carolina Pennsylvania Ohio Kentucky South Carolina Virginia New Hampshire Rhode Island West Virginia New York Vermont Maine Connecticut Nebraska Oklahoma Colorado Wyoming Maryland Delaware New Mexico Texas Alaska Minnesota New Hampshire Vermont Massachusetts Rhode Island Connecticut New Jersey Delaware Maryland Hawaii District of Columbia
        Canada Locations Canada Locations
        Mexico Locations Mexico Locations
    • Close
  • Locations
      • United States FlagUnited States
    • Close

Pakistan Suffered a Polio Setback in 2019

January 15, 2020 By Will Sowards Leave a Comment

A lack of accessible vaccines have helped polio return in Pakistan.

The world achieved a milestone in 2019 in the fight against polio.

With the world’s most effective polio vaccine used worldwide, hopes for eradication increased. Nigeria, once riddled by the disease, is now on the brink of eliminating polio.

And yet, even with all the optimistic news, outbreaks are still occurring throughout the world. Most recently, there has been a resurgence of polio cases in Pakistan.

This is a concern, because polio is a brain disease, causing severe symptoms that can turn deadly. Polio spreads through contaminated food, water, and sometimes saliva. Mild symptoms of polio are fever, headache, stomach pain, and a sore throat.

But, because polio attacks the brain and spinal cord, it often causes paralysis. This paralysis can affect an individual throughout their entire lives. Other symptoms that are more severe are sharp pain (specifically in your legs), paralysis, meningitis, and even death.

Polio in Pakistan

In recent years, Pakistan was fighting to completely eradicate polio and in 2017 and 2018, things were looking promising. During that time, case numbers even dropped to eight per year. Although, in 2019, these numbers skyrocketed to 128 cases in just one year.

Pakistan is one of three countries in the world where Polio is still considered an endemic along with Afghanistan and Nigeria.

To eradicate polio in these countries, vaccines must be readily available and administered to everyone.

But, that one aspect remains the problem. Especially in Pakistan, where instability and unrest have actually made it dangerous for people to administer vaccinations.

In December, two police officers were killed while with a vaccination team. Those deaths were the 97th and 98th related to the vaccination campaign since 2012.

Doctors, policemen, and people involved in the vaccination campaign are targeted by extremists who believe vaccinations are contaminated and a Western plot. The fears of contamination and side-effects of vaccinations continue to spread throughout the region. Fear tactics and false information on social media only make the campaigns even more difficult.

Although, even after these recent attacks, locals haven’t stopped with their efforts. The goal of vaccinations accessible to everyone continued on National Immunization Day. On this day, a vast numbers of teams go door to door to administer the vaccination to children under the age of five.

What Does this Mean for Polio Around the World?

The eradication of polio may rest on the outcome in Pakistan. The world can never reach polio eradication without vaccinations being readily and safely available to all.

If these attacks like the ones in Pakistan continue, the effects could disproportionately harm the local Muslim community as their children continue to lack access to the necessary vaccine.

Since 1988, the World Health Organization has reported that the cases of wild poliovirus have gone from 350,000 to just 33 in 2018. Although, with those numbers rising in Pakistan, the effort to eradicate polio is looking less promising.

If you’re planning to travel to an area where polio is still present, you should make sure that you are vaccinated. These countries include:

  • Afghanistan
  • Democratic Republic of Congo
  • Nigeria
  • Pakistan
  • Somalia
  • Syria

If you’re in need of a polio vaccine or any other vaccine for your next trip, Passport Health is ready to help. To speak to a travel health nurse give us a call at or book an appointment online.

Have you traveled to a region with active polio cases? Do you think we’ll be able to eradicate polio in the coming years? Let us know in the comments, or via Facebook and Twitter.

Written for Passport Health by Kaitlyn Luckow. Kaitlyn is a freelance writer, photographer and English teacher in Milwaukee. She has a passion for capturing and writing other people’s stories. You can find her at sayhellostory.com.

Filed Under: General Posts

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

Do you need your passport or visa in a hurry?

Passport Icon

Get your travel
documents ASAP!

Why Use a Travel Medicine Specialist?

Countless Considerations, Even for Just One Destination!

We Can Answer

  • Which vaccines are required?
  • Which vaccines may be recommended?
  • Which medications do I need?
  • What Travel Supplies do I need?

And much more

Do you need travel vaccines?

Schedule an appointment with your local Passport Health Travel Medicine Specialist

Find a Passport Health Clinic

Latest health alerts for international travelers

International Health Alerts

INFLUENZA Worldwide
June '19 – According to the CDC, annual vaccination against seasonal influenza is recommended for ...

YELLOW FEVER in Argentina, Brazil, Congo, Republic of the, Nigeria, Peru, Suriname, Uganda
June '19 - Case numbers for yellow fever are thought to be greatly under-reported; the World Health...

More Health Alert Information»

Recent Blog Posts

  • How Does Measles Spread? A New Study Gives Answers
  • The Necessary and Unfortunate Identity of “Patient Zero”
  • What Was The Plague of Justinian? How A Single Outbreak Killed 10% Of The World’s Population.
  • Tips To Stay Safe While Traveling Alone

Blog Archives

  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Clinical Trials
  • Contact Us
  • Records Requests
  • Privacy Center
  • Online Store
  • Sitemap
Schedule Your Appointment:
Questions? Please call or E-mail Us
FIRST CLASS MEDICAL CARE
FOR TRAVEL ANYWHERE®

Connect With Us:

Passport Health on Facebook
Passport Health on Twitter
Passport Health on YouTube
Passport Health on Instagram
Passport Health on Linked In
Passport Health Feed

Passport Health is an Outlier business Copyright © 2021