In this Bulletin there is some recent information on the fight against polio.
Wild poliovirus circulates in only two countries — Afghanistan and Pakistan — where this year nine cases had been reported by June.
However there have been cases of vaccine-derived poliovirus, particularly in Africa and Asia. These cases come from a widely used oral vaccine that contains live, weakened virus that sometimes mutates to a dangerous form capable of infecting the nervous system. Neither the United States nor the United Kingdom use that vaccine, opting instead for an injectable vaccine containing inactivated virus. This vaccine can keep the virus from infecting the nervous system, but it is not as effective as the oral virus at reducing viral shedding and halting transmission, says Raul Andino-Pavlovsky, a microbiologist at the University of California, San Francisco.
Unfortunately cases of vaccine derived poliovirus, even though statistically incredibly unlikely, give the anti-vaccine brigade something to base their arguments on. Some members may have seen some of that material including the argument that "new ingredients" have been added. If you have seen that material and had cause to wonder then check out the link below as it may help put your mind at rest.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-02233-6
To ensure you get all the up to date information about our club make sure you register for the AGM meeting on Monday 17th of October.