What are the risks for Italy

At the end of June, the UK Health Safety Agency (UKHSA) announce to discover virus Responsible for poliomyelitis (polio virus) in samples from Sewage They were collected between February and May at the London Beckton Sewage Treatment Works, a facility in the Newham area of ​​London (East London). The virus has been classified asVaccine-derived polio virus type 2 (VDPV2)And it was evolving. Experts considered that local transmission is possible. Even more surprising is what happened in New York, where it was an unvaccinated young man from Rockland County He contracted the virus and became paralyzed, one of the most serious complications of polio. For more than 40 years, there have been no domestic cases of infection of polio virus in the United States, while the last “import” dates back about 10 years. More recent reports of the pathogen have been reported Ukrainein Israel And in other countries where the virus is not endemic, that is, where it is constantly present and causes cycles disease outbreakas in Afghanistan.

distanceAbnormal spread of monkeypoxwhich has been classified by the World Health Organization as a global health emergency, it is therefore legitimate to ask whether even the polio virus can “raise its head” and manifest in other countries, Italia Including. Of course, the glass ball does not contain anything, but it must be borne in mind that the dynamics of some pathogens seem to change with covid-19 pandemic. just think of mysterious acute hepatitis that affected children in recent months, which required about fifty Liver transplant And caused the deaths of 22 young men. according to recent study Conducted by scientists from the Center for Virus Research (CVR) at the University of Glasgow and the Royal Children’s Hospital, the most likely cause of the disease is the co-infection of two pathogens, glandular it’s a Adeno-associated virus 2 (AAV2), which were identified in almost all biological samples of affected children. The former are known to cause hepatitis, but only in weak children and ImmunocompromisedThe second was considered harmless. It is not clear what could turn viruses into pathogens that are very aggressive towards healthy children, but the study authors believe that pandemic It may have played a role. The CloseFor example, it may have weakened immune system From young people (eliminating constant exposure to pathogens that strengthen immune defenses) and making them “easy prey” for viruses that have taken advantage of the situation. The infection control measures Introduced, moreover, can modulate the circulation of pathogens, favored by mutations And somehow the susceptibility to infection increased. Experts believe that the monkeypox virus may also have taken advantage of the epidemic to spread beyond endemic countries.

It cannot be excluded that the same may have also happened with the polio virus, in favor of a case flaccid paralysis In New York the outbreak was recorded in November 2021 in Ukraine, but clarification must be provided. In very rare cases, it’s the same live vaccine Used for the prevention of polio to be able to provoke infection. oral vaccine OPV – The best because it also prevents infection – Depends on a debilitating virus Which, in certain circumstances, mutations can build up in our gut and restore the aggressiveness of the actual polio virus. The virus in London sewage, shown, is A Vaccine virus This is the accumulation of mutations. This vaccine pathogen can be transmitted just like the original polio virus, i.e. Via the fecal-oral routeAnd the As defined by the National Institute of Health (ISS). Infection occurs “through ingestion of contaminated food or water or through saliva and droplets released from coughing and sneezing by sick persons or healthy carriers. The poliovirus replicates in the oral mucosa, pharynx, intestines, and underlying lymphoid tissues and can also spread through the stool before symptoms appear.” Humans are the only natural reservoir of polio virus, which can infect people of all ages but mainly manifests in children under the age of three,” the ISS writes. In the vast majority of cases, infection is No visible symptoms or Nicebut in 1 percent of positives the polio virus can invade Nervous system and destroy nervous cellscausing even complete paralysis in the most severe forms of polio.

To stop the very limited risk of contracting the polio vaccine, in countries where the virus is not endemic, a non-OPV vaccine is being made, an intramuscular vaccine, which protects against disease but not infection. Until an OPV vaccine is developed that conclusively reduces the risk of polio infection, there will always be a risk that a virus of this type could land in other countries and spread (eg after a flight). It is not known whether the poliovirus vaccine or the three types of poliovirus (1, 2 and 3) responsible for polio could benefit in any way from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, or if they have already done so in light the above anomalies. What is certain is that prevent Infectious diseases It should always be high – essentialhand hygiene – And health authorities must continue to closely monitor the situation, for example through continuous analyzes of Sewage. It is reported that the last (domestic) case of polio was recorded in Italy 40 years ago, while Europe was considered virus-free for 20 years.