Indonesia has been declared free from polio since 2014.
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – Polio can attack all ages, but especially children under the age of five. Also called viral infectious disease poliomyelitis This can lead to paralysis by damage to the motor neurons in the anterior horn of the spinal cord.
In toddlers who have not received vaccination, polio is highly contagious and attacks the nervous system. That is why parents who have not immunized their children with polio vaccine should immediately give it according to the doctor’s direction.
Representative from the Directorate of Health Surveillance and Quarantine of the Ministry of Health, Drg Vensya Sitohang, said that Indonesia had been declared free from disease polio since 2014. In order to maintain this status, vaccination and education efforts on polio must be carried out.
“We are also making efforts to prevent polio virus cases originating from other countries, so that it should not happen in Indonesia,” Vensya said in a virtual press conference to commemorate World Polio Day.
Vensya wants World Polio Day can be a means to increase public awareness about polio so that future generations are free from the threat of the disease. In addition, he also appreciates the efforts of WHO and stakeholder others in realizing a Polio Free Indonesia.
According to Vensya, protection of vulnerable groups, namely infants with immunization, can prevent it from spreading to other age groups. The coverage of polio immunization is given four times before the baby is six months old and polio immunization is injected inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) according to the data on the immunization bulletin that has been sent to the provinces and to all regions has not yet reached the target of 95 percent.
“This is a challenge for us,” he said.
To detect polio cases, the two most important ways to do it are the detection and reporting of cases of sudden paralysis through surveillance acute flaccyd paralysis (AFP). Furthermore, a stool examination in the case of AFP is needed to prove whether the person is polio or not.
Since 1999, the wild polio virus type 2 has not been found. What is still circulating is the wild polio virus type 1.While type 3, it was last discovered in 2012.
“The polio vaccine actively builds immunity to fight the virus that causes polio in children and adults. Therefore, we are working with many parties in providing education, prevention and treatment of polio in Indonesia, both for medical and lay personnel,” “Said Vensya.
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