Poliomyelitis (polio) in China

Poliomyelitis, commonly referred to as polio, is a highly infectious disease and mainly affects children under five years old. Polio is caused by a virus that is transmitted through contaminated food and water, and symptoms include fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck, and pain in the limbs. One in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis, and can lead to death. While there is no cure for polio, it can be prevented by vaccination.

In 2000 China was declared polio-free (of the wild polio virus) by the Regional Commission for the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication in the WHO Western Pacific Region.  This is a result of three strategies that have been prioritized in the battle to eliminate polio: achieving and maintaining greater than 90% coverage of the full four dose polio vaccine for children through the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI); maintaining a nation-wide surveillance system; and the secure containment or destruction of all polio viruses of eradicated strains.