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Poliomyelitis

Polio is an infectious disease mostly contracted by children. One in two hundred people develop incurable paralysis after infection. In 1955, a vaccine was invented and was introduced on a wide scale. Thanks to global efforts, polio was eliminated from the Western Hemisphere by 1994, and has greatly decreased worldwide.

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Facts

Poliovirus is highly contagious and infected individuals shed virus in the faeces and from oral secretions, thus the mode of transmission is person-to-person, both via the faecal-oral and the oral-oral routes.

Threats and outbreaks

Surveillance and disease data

ECDC’s annual epidemiological reports provide a wealth of epidemiological data to support decision-making at the national level.

Preparedness

Supporting EU Member States in updating their polio preparedness plans.

Prevention and control

Immunisation is the cornerstone of polio eradication. Two types of vaccine are available: an inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) and a live attenuated OPV. 

Latest outputs

Publication

Communicable disease threats report, 7-13 March 2021, week 10

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Publication

Communicable disease threats report, 17-23 January 2021, week 3

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Publication

Communicable disease threats report, 29 November-5 December 2020, week 49

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Publication

Communicable disease threats report, 1-7 November 2020, week 45

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Publication

Communicable disease threats report, 11-17 October 2020, week 42

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Peer-Reviewed Publication

Polio and the risk for the European Union

Jan 2014

Peer-Reviewed Publication

Outbreak of poliomyelitis in Tajikistan in 2010: risk for importation and impact on polio surveillance in Europe?

Apr 2010

Peer-Reviewed Publication

Protection against poliomyelitis in Europe

Apr 2010

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Disease networks

EUVAC.Net

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