Afghanistan reports first polio death of 2023

Kabul [Afghanistan], May 15 : Afghanistan on Sunday reported its first death due to poliovirus in 2023 in Nangarhar, reported Tolo News.
The Ministry of Public Health reported two cases of polio in Nangarhar. A spokesman for the Health Ministry, Sharafat Zaman Amerkhail said that these two cases have been reported in Koot and Batikoot districts of Nangarhar province. One polio-stricken child has died.
"In these two cases, one child is 4 years old and the other is 11. One of them lost their life and we want to start a polio vaccination campaign to prevent this disease," said Amerkhail.
Family members of the child who died in Batikoot district said that one year ago their child was infected with polio and was paralyzed from the neck down and after severe diarrhoea died in the hospital.
The child was named Nazo, reported Tolo News.
"Her neck became paralyzed. She couldn't control it. We took her to the hospital and on the night of Eid she died," said Iqbal Shah, the grandfather of Nazo.
"After this disease (polio) her feet become tiny. Her stomach become acidic, she lost control of her neck and she couldn't digest food," said Zarmina, the mother of Nazo.
Meanwhile, the Health Ministry said they will start a polio vaccination campaign soon.
A total of 56 cases of polio were reported in Afghanistan in 2020, while four cases were reported in 2021. Two instances of polio were reported last year. The number of polio cases in the country has hence been dropping.
Polio is a severely contagious and disabling disease typically spread through contaminated water or food. The infection can induce complete paralysis within hours after invading the nervous system.
As per reports, the contagious virus thrived in the borderland between Pakistan and Afghanistan, where terrorists attacked anti-polio teams, as per Khaama Press.