Islamabad [Pakistan], February 28 (ANI): Pakistan has reported two new cases of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1), taking the overall tally in 2025 to five, Dawn reported.

The two new polio cases have been reported in Sindh and Punjab.

The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health said that the cases have been detected in Sindh's Kambar and Punjab's Mandi Bahauddin.

Speaking to Dawn, a lab official said, 'This is the third polio case from Sindh and the first from Punjab this year, bringing the total number of cases in 2025 to five.'

The three previous cases in 2025 were detected in Badin and Larkana districts of Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Dera Ismail Khan district.

Pakistan is facing a rise in poliovirus cases as 74 cases were reported in 2024. Of these, 27 were reported from Balochistan, 22 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 23 from Sindh, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.

Earlier this month, Pakistan's first nationwide polio vaccination campaign was conducted. Following this, a fractional IPV-OPV Polio [injectable polio vaccine] campaign was held in Quetta and Karachi on February 20 and 22, respectively, according to a Dawn report.

On February 2, Quetta administration arrested five people who refused to allow their children to be vaccinated against polio, ARY News reported. Assistant Commissioner Maria Shamooun, accompanied by a polio team, visited various areas of Sariab and 15 children of reluctant parents were administered the polio vaccine after persuasion, according to district administration. Despite repeated warnings, five parents who continued to refuse vaccination were taken into custody.

According to World Health Organization (WHO), polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus. The virus is transmitted by person-to-person spread mainly through the faecal-oral route or, less frequently, by a common vehicle (for example, contaminated water or food) and multiplies in the intestine. Fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness of the neck and pain in the limbs are the initial symptoms of polio virus.

One in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis (usually in the legs). Among those paralysed, 5-10 per cent die when their breathing muscles become immobilized.Children under 5 years of age are mainly affected by polio, according to WHO. However, anyone of any age who is unvaccinated can contract the disease.

There is no cure for polio, it can only be prevented. Polio vaccine, given multiple times, can protect a child for life. There are two vaccines available: oral polio vaccine and inactivated polio vaccine. (ANI)