Despite the WHO warning about the return of Vaccine-Derived Type 2 Polio Virus (VDPV2), some of the blood samples collected on August 30 in Ahmedabad city tested positive for Sabin-like type 2 polio virus.
Earlier, World Health Organization had warned Gujarat and Telangana about the return of the polio virus.
According to a Times of India report, The virus was detected approximately four months after the Gujara health department was told to ensure a switch from the Trivalent Oral Polio Virus Vaccine (tOPV — consisting of types 1, 2, 3 polio viruses) to the Bivalent Oral Polio Virus Vaccine (bOPV — consisting of type 1 and 3 viruses).
The detection of the vaccine-derived type 2 virus in sewerage at private clinics clearly indicated that the tOPV vials were still used by medical practitioners in the state.
Unlike Gujarat, Telangana had declared a global emergency in June following the WHO alert. More than 3 lakh children in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts have been injected with the new vaccines from WHO head quarters.
