MANILA – The Department of Health (DOH) reported the third confirmed case of polio in the country.
A four-year-old female from Datu Piang in Maguindanao tested positive for poliovirus, Health Secretary Francisco Duque said in a statement on Monday.
According to Duque, the patient was initially diagnosed with acute flaccid paralysis on September 26 by the Cotabato Regional Medical Center after displaying symptoms like fever, diarrhea, vomiting, and muscle pain.
On Oct. 24, the National Institute of Infectious Diseases said the stool samples from the patient tested positive for vaccine-derived poliovirus 2 (VDPV2).
The poliovirus isolated by the institute was genetically linked to the VDPV2 from a patient previously confirmed to have polio in Lanao del Sur.
The recent fatality had not received any dose of oral polio vaccine, the DOH said.
Meanwhile, samples from another suspected polio case have already been sent to the laboratory for testing.
Duque said the health department will be conducting a massive vaccination campaign in Datu Piang from November 4 to 8 for an estimated 4,254 children between 0 to 59 months.
The DOH, World Health Organization, and United Nations Children’s Fund are also set to meet with officials of Datu Piang from Monday to Tuesday to discuss the outbreak response.
“I enjoin all parents and guardians, to ensure that all of your children are protected from all vaccine-preventable diseases,” Duque said.
The first confirmed polio case in the country after 19 years was a 3-year-old girl in Morogong, Lanao del Sur, while the second was a 5-year-old boy from Laguna.
In September, the DOH said it plans to vaccinate 5.5 million children against polio amid the reemergence of the virus in the country. (GMA News/PN)