ISLAMABAD: A polio case from North Waziristan district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was confirmed by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad.
The virus has been detected in a 19-month-old boy from Miranshah. This is the eighth polio case emerging from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in this year, and 14 overall in the country for 2025.
Polio is a highly infectious and incurable disease that can only be prevented with repeated anti-polio vaccination, administered to children until the age of five years. Vaccination remains a challenge for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa despite repeated anti-polio drives by the government. Geographical, social and security concerns are some of the hurdles in 100 per cent coverage of these campaigns.
On June 20, another case was confirmed in Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. According to the KP Health Department, the NIH in Islamabad had confirmed the virus in a child from Shamsi Khel. It was the seventh case reported from the province, which has now taken the lead with eight cases followed by four in Sindh and one each from Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Also read: KP takes Pakistan’s 2025 polio tally to 13 with another case