Bhutan officially declared polio free

Mar 27, 2014

Bhutan is now declared polio free officially. Bhutan actually has been polio free for close to three decades now. The last case was reported in 1986 at the Damphu hospital. But the country had to wait for India to become polio free.

Health Minister, Tandin Wangchuk, received the Polio Free Certificate today at the WHO South East Asia Regional Polio-Free Certification Event in New Delhi, India.

Polio is a serious disease. It can lead to irreversible paralysis, usually in the legs, crippling the lives of the infected persons.

It can also be fatal if it paralyses breathing muscles. There is no cure for polio. It can only be prevented through vaccination.

Health officials attribute polio eradication to ttimely vaccination programmes and strict monitoring.

Health Ministry says the country will introduce inactivated Polio Vaccine in July next year in line with the global polio endgame strategic plan 2013-2018.

It also says the existing polio surveillance and high immunisation coverage will be maintained until polio is eradicated globally.