China Reports Outbreak of Polio

(Per the BC World News Online 9.20.11) 
Polio has been found in China for the first time since 1999 after spreading from Pakistan, the World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed.  It said a strain of polio (WPV1) found in China was genetically linked with the type now circulating in Pakistan. At least seven cases have now been confirmed in China's western Xinjiang province, which borders Pakistan. The WHO warned there was a high risk of the crippling virus spreading further during Muslim pilgrimages to Mecca. Polio (also called poliomyelitis) is highly infectious and affects the nervous system, sometimes resulting in paralysis. It is transmitted through contaminated food, drinking water and faeces.
On Tuesday, the WHO said the polio cases in Xinjiang had been detected in the past two months.
The Chinese authorities are now investigating the cases, and a mass vaccination campaign has been launched in the region."So far all the right things are being done," WHO spokesman Oliver Rosenbauer told Reuters news agency. Polio was last brought into China from India in 1999. China's last indigenous case was in 1994. Pakistan is one of a handful of countries where polio remains endemic.WHO officials had been warning for some time that the virus was spreading within the country to previously uninfected areas.The UN's children fund, Unicef, has said that eradicating polio from Pakistan depends on delivering oral vaccines to each and every child, including the most vulnerable and the hardest to reach. Polio was virtually eliminated from the Western hemisphere in the 20th Century.

Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  Polio is a life-threatening, debilitating disease that can be prevented via oral vaccination.  Do your part to keep polio from coming back to the Western hemisphere and make sure you immunize your children against this terrible disease.  No one wants to see a dead child or one who is crippled for life when it can be prevented.

Adult Vaccines You Might Want to Receive

Today's blog is courtesy of Prevention Magazine...
"Millions of American adults forgo lifesaving vaccinations, so Prevention asked top infectious disease experts which shots you need most. Consult this list, then talk with your doctor about caveats: Certain vaccines aren't right for pregnant women or anyone whose immune system is compromised.


Tetanus and diphtheria (Td), plus whooping cough (Tdap)
You may have gotten Td before, but immunity wears off, so you need booster shots. Tdap also protects against whooping cough, which is highly contagious. Though not usually serious in adults, it can be deadly in babies, who typically catch it from adults. You need it if...It's been 10 years since your last Td vaccine.  You're under 65 and have never had a Tdap. Get one instead of your next Td.  You're around infants and it's been 2 years or more since your last Td. Get a Tdap now.

Measles, mumps, and rubellaThough these diseases had almost vanished in the U.S., international travel and reduced vaccination rates have resulted in outbreaks in recent years, making the MMR vaccination essential.
You need it if... You were born between 1957 and about 1975 and/or have never had an MMR series--especially if you're around infants (who aren't immunized until after age 1).

Pneumonia, and its complications, such as meningitis
It's critical because the pneumococcal vaccine fights pneumonia and its complications, which can be life threatening in the very young, the very old, and those with underlying health problems.
You need it if...You're 65 or older.  You have asthma, diabets, heart disease, liver disease, or other serious health problems.  You smoke.

Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  Be smart!  The world has grown into a very small place and international travel has led to many diseases thought long erradicated from this country making a fierce comeback (bedbugs aren't a disease, but they seem to really dig NYC as their hot tourist destination these days).  Protect yourselves.  Speak with you M.D. about appropriate vaccinations.  On another note:  there's much talk about childhood vaccines possibly being the cause for rampant autism.  I disagree.  If this were true, why aren't more adults autistic??  I have a patient who caught polio at 9 months of age and has been living with full body braces for over 40 years.  Now, this person's upper body is steadily fatiguing from the burden it has had all these years struggling with crutches.  A vaccine could have prevented this.  Did you know that denying a male child from the mumps vaccine can lead to orcchitis (inflamation of the testes) which will lead to certain infertility?  As a parent, everyone wants to do what's best for their child....think of how your child would live a life crippled or infertile because of your decision....