VACCINATION MUST FOR VISITORS from polio-hit nations

From March 1, polio vaccination will be mandatory for all international travelers coming to India from polio-infected countries.

• The Health Ministry has also made OPV (oral polio vaccine) compulsory for those travelling from India to polio-endemic countries and countries with poliovirus circulation to prevent virus importation.
• The polio-endemic countries are Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan. Countries with poliovirus circulation are Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Syria.
• OPV vaccination certificates, valid for one year, will be issued by the government.
• Resident nationals of the seven infected countries are required to receive an OPV dose, regardless of age and vaccination status, at least four weeks prior to departure for India. The vaccination certificate will have to be produced while applying for visa and during travel in India.
• OPV is not mandatory for foreign nationals residing in the seven infected countries or India before their travel.
• Travelers can contact local health authorities in their countries for vaccination and certificates.
• Travelers from India to countries with poliovirus transmission should receive a dose of OPV at least four weeks prior to departure.
• Each district has designated at least one centre where OPV vaccination will be given and certificate issued. The District Immunization Officer is the designated official for issue of certificates.

Related information:

Oral Polio Vaccine- OPV produces antibodies in the blood to all three types of poliovirus. In the event of infection, these antibodies protect against paralysis by preventing the spread of wild poliovirus to the nervous system

OPV produces antibodies in the blood to all three types of poliovirus. In the event of infection, these antibodies protect against paralysis by preventing the spread of wild poliovirus to the nervous system

OPV also produces a local, mucosal immune response in the mucous membrane of the intestines. In the event of infection, these mucosal antibodies limit the replication of the wild poliovirus inside the intestine. This intestinal immune response to OPV is thought to be the main reason why mass campaigns with OPV can rapidly stop person-to-person transmission of wild poliovirus

Advantages-

• OPV is administered orally. It can be given by volunteers and does not require trained health workers or sterile injection equipment
• The vaccine is relatively inexpensive
• OPV is safe, effective, and induces long-lasting immunity to all three types of poliovirus
• For several weeks after vaccination, the vaccine virus replicates in the intestine, is excreted in the faeces, and can be spread to others in close contact. This means that in areas where hygiene and sanitation are poor, immunization with OPV can result in the “passive” immunization of people who have not been directly vaccinated

Disadvantages-

• Although OPV is safe and effective, in extremely rare cases (approx. 1 in every 2.7 million first doses of the vaccine) the live attenuated vaccine virus in OPV can cause paralysis. In some cases it is believed that this vaccine-associated paralytic polio (VAPP) may be triggered by immune deficiency. The extremely low risk of VAPP is well known and accepted by most public health programmes in the world because without OPV, hundreds of thousands of children would be crippled every year.
• A second disadvantage is that very rarely the virus in the vaccine may genetically change and start to circulate among a population. These viruses are known as circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPV).