Beed VDPV case: 42 stool samples collected for analysis

Alarmed by a ten-month-old boy being detected with rare strain of polio virus derived from oral vaccine here, health authorities have taken stool samples of as many as 42 children from Kanhapur village to ascertain the source of infection, a senior official said today.
"The samples were collected yesterday and sent to Enterovirus Research Centre in Mumbai. The laboratory report of the samples is expected by June 11", Beed district Reproductive and Child Health Officer Dr H V Wadgave said today.
Vaccine-derived polioviruses (VDPVs) are rare strains of poliovirus that have genetically mutated from the strain contained in the oral polio vaccine.

"These sample have been taken as we have to find out whether the source of infection was the excreta of children living in the neighbourhood of the affected boy," he said.
The medical fraternity was shocked after it was found that the child has been suffering from the Vaccine Derived Polio Virus (VDPV) type 2, a very rare variety of the disease, against the backdrop of the country's polio-free status.
"There are two reason for VDPV infection. While one is diminished immunity the other being the stool of the children who are already suffering from VDPV. We have done a survey of Kanhapur vllage and sent the report to the Family Welfare Ministry of state government", the officer said.

When a child is given polio vaccine, the weakened vaccine-virus replicates in the intestine and enters into the blood stream, triggering a protective immune response in the child.
Like wild poliovirus, the child excretes the vaccine-virus for a period of six to eight weeks. Importantly, as it is excreted, some of the vaccine-virus may no longer be the same as the original vaccine-virus as it has genetically altered during replication. This is called a vaccine-derived poliovirus.
Meanwhile, a World Health Organisation (WHO) team comprising the Regional Team Leader (West Zone) Dr. Ravindra Banpel and member Dr. Satish Saraf, besides Dr. Wadgave visited Kanhapur village today.