| 2010-10-27 07:40:44 |
KAMPALA, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Ugandan health ministry announced on Tuesday that the country has been struck by a polio outbreak, the second year in a row after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the country polio free in 2006.
A two-year old girl in the eastern Ugandan district of Bugiri fell the victim after laboratory tests both in Uganda and South Africa showed that she had Wild Polio Virus Type 1.
"This two year old child was well until Sept. 20 when she developed a fever. On Sept. 25-26, she was taken to a health center where she was treated of malaria. On Sept. 29 she failed to stand without support and became unable to walk using the right leg," minister of health Stephen Mallinga narrated the girl's ordeal to reporters here.
Experts say that the polio virus the child has is linked to the one isolated in the Turkana region of Kenya on February 3, 2009, indicating that the virus has been spreading up to the districts bordering Kenya, Uganda's neighbor to the east.
The ministry of health now fears that 48 districts bordering with Kenya are at risk or at worst, there may be already unreported cases especially in the northeastern part of the country which borders the Turkana region.
The polio virus is transmitted by drinking water or eating food contaminated with fecal material containing the virus.
A child infected with the virus presents with acute fever followed by weakness in the limbs.
Health experts say that out of 100 children infected with the virus, only one develops the acute state of the disease which presents with weakness of limbs.
Most of the polio outbreaks in Uganda are imported from neighboring countries. In February 2009, a sample from a 16-month- old baby boy in the northern Ugandan district of Amuru tested positive for the polio virus.
The virus is reported to have been imported from neighboring southern Sudan where there was an outbreak.
The eastern Democratic Republic of Congo which had also reported polio cases in 2009 continues to be a risk to Uganda as some Congolese flee to the country when there are political upheavals back home.
"Uganda had been declared polio free but some of our neighboring countries, the health situation there is not as well as it should be," said Mallinga.
DWINDLING RESOURCES
The polio situation in Uganda is likely to worsen as the country's ministry of health is reporting that it is facing financial shortages to help carry out polio immunization.
Mallinga said that until last year, the ministry has been depending entirely on donor funds to carry out the immunization programs.
According to observers, the financial crisis that has affected most of the donor countries is likely to worsen the funding as they cut back on spending.
Currently the country needs about 11 billion shillings (5 million U.S. dollars) to carryout a mass immunization exercise in 48 districts but the ministry can only raise 1.3 billion shillings (about 600,000 dollars).
Joaquim Saweka, WHO representative to Uganda said that there is need for urgent mobilization of funds from both government and donor agencies in order to fight polio which not only poses a threat to the country but the region and the world.
"We need immediate response to this outbreak; otherwise we will put our children and the children of neighboring countries and the entire world again at the risk of polio that was almost eradicated, " he said.
RENEWING FIGHT
Despite the financial shortages, the ministry said that starting this month until January next year, a mass immunization exercise is going to be carried out in 48 districts in northern, northeastern and eastern parts of the country.
Malinga said that a house to house strategy will be used to ensure that all targeted children are immunized.
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