Polio virus discovered in J'lem for first time

Health Ministry finds small amounts of virus in capital's wastewater treatment center. Manager of the public office for medical services urges public to vaccinate

Yaron Kelner|Published: 09.10.13 , 00:10

The Health Ministry reported Wednesday that the polio virus was found in a Jerusalem wastewater treatment center.

So far, 700,000 children in Israel were vaccinated against the virus.

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The specimen in which the virus – in relatively small amounts – was found was taken on August 27, nine days after a national project to administer the vaccine to children under the age of nine nationwide.

Some 45,000 children were vaccinated in the capital, which is approximately 30% of the number of children under the age of nine in Jerusalem.

According to Prof. Itamar Grotto, manager of the public office for medical services, “this discovery only proves that we must continue with the vaccinations. Our estimate is that two months after the beginning of the project (to vaccinate all children under the age of nine), we will be able to witness a decrease in the amounts of polio in sewages.

The project to vaccinate children nationwide is scheduled to continue until mid-October.

The polio virus was detected in sewage systems in south Israel several months ago, and since then the Health Ministry has been vaccinating children from the area. In July, it became clear that the virus is spreading and it was found in central Israel. Following consultations with professional sources and the World Health Organization, it was decided to launch a nationwide campaign of vaccinations.