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Image: StockTrek Images/IMAGOImage: StockTrek Images/IMAGO

Polio

Polio is a virus that is spread through contaminated water. The virus is also transmitted by person-to-person contact. It can attack the brain and spinal cord, but there is a vaccine that can prevent it.

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All Content on this topic

A polio worker in Karachi amid tight security

Pakistan halts anti-polio drive after attacks

Three polio workers have been killed in April, while many parents have refused to allow their children to be inoculated.
HealthApril 27, 2019
Girl receiving oral vaccine in Pakista

Polio — Still a danger

Polio is nearly eradicated — but not quite. Every case risks provoking an epidemic.
HealthOctober 28, 2018
Merck-Wissenschafts-Konferenz "Curious Future Insight" in Darmstadt

"The low vaccination rate is a scandal!"

Nobel Prize winner zur Hausen about cancer-causing viruses and scepticism towards vaccinations
ScienceJuly 23, 2018
A child receives a cholera vaccination in South Sudan's capital Juba

Vaccination remains a challenge in Africa

Donors pledged $7.5 million to GAVI, a global vaccine alliance in 2015. Three years later, challenges remain.
HealthApril 26, 2018
Listening to the Earth with a stethoscope

WHO marks World Health Day with #HealthForAll plea

On World Health Day, DW takes a look at how the World Health Organization is aiming to achieve universal health care.
HealthApril 7, 2018
Osama bin Laden Zeitung Nachricht Zeitungsartikel

The forgotten case of the 'bin Laden doctor'

Bin Laden was killed in 2011, but the person who allegedly helped the CIA find him has been in jail for over six years.
SocietyNovember 16, 2017
Nigeria | Polio-Impfung in Maidguri

Anti-polio campaign in western Africa

A major drive to eradicate polio among 116 million children is beginning in western and central Africa.
HealthMarch 24, 2017
Shakil Afridi

Swapping Afridi with Siddiqui?

Pakistani officials say that a jailed doctor who allegedly helped the US find bin Laden in 2011 will not be released.
PoliticsJanuary 18, 2017
Symbolbild Rollstuhl

Polio - a disease that haunts its victims

Paralysis in arms and legs are typical symptoms of polio. But symptoms are likely to return later in life.
ScienceOctober 27, 2016
Symbol-Icon als Anklick-Button für die AfricaLink Webseite

AfricaLink on Air – 24 October 2016: 0705 UTC

WHO warns of complacency on World Polio Day +++ Kenya crowns Mr. and Miss Albinism
HealthOctober 24, 201625:00 min
Symbol-Icon als Anklick-Button für die AfricaLink Webseite

Africalink 24.10.16 - 0405 UTC - MP3-Stereo

Today is World Polio Day +++ Children in Nigeria victimized allegedly for witchcraft
PoliticsOctober 24, 201625:00 min
Nigeria Polio Virus Impfung

WHO: Africa polio free apart from Nigeria

World Polio Day was first marked a decade ago to fight polio. Today, most African countries are now free of the disease.
HealthOctober 23, 2016
Symbolbild Afghanistan Humanitäre Hilfe

What if we fail to eradicate polio?

The global public health initiative to eradicate polio is "not a done deal." That's the consensus at WHS2016 in Berlin.
HealthOctober 11, 2016
Kongo Robert Mboyo testet den neuen Rollstuhl

New mobility for people living with disability in DRC

The DRC is making small but meaningful steps toward better access for people living with disabilities.
August 26, 2016
A baby's mouth is forced into a pucker by an adult hand, while another hand squeezes a vial that drops the vaccine into the baby's mouth.

Nigeria launches emergency polio vaccine effort

Nigeria has launched an emergency polio vaccination program after two infants were found to have contracted the disease.
August 13, 2016
A Pakistani health worker vaccinates a baby aginst polio with drops.

Worldwide effort to eliminate polio

Officials hope that a coordinated effort to launch a new vaccine worldwide will finally eliminate the Polio virus.
April 17, 2016
AfricaLink's LISTEN NOW icon

AfricaLink on Air - 22 March 2016: 0705 UTC

Results from five African elections roll in ++ Today is World Water Day ++ al-Shabab using new tactics in Somalia?
March 22, 201624:59 min
AfricaLink's icon used to guide users to listen to the show

AfricaLink on Air - 22 March 2016: 0705 UTC

Results from five African elections roll in ++ Today is World Water Day ++ al-Shabab using new tactics in Somalia?
March 22, 2016

A Polio Survivor fights back

Despite stark opposition to vaccination programs, Nigeria has recently seen a concerted effort to eradicate polio.
February 3, 2016
external

Fighting polio in Nigeria

One polio survivor campaigns to eradicate the virus and to help others disabled by the disease.
ScienceFebruary 1, 201600:00 min

Quetta blast kills at least 14

A bomb blast outside a polio vaccination center in Quetta, Pakistan, kills at least 14 people and wounding 20 others.
January 13, 2016
Schluckimpfung gegen Polio

Post Polio Syndrome

Vaccination is the only protection against the Polio virus. It can cause paralysis as can the Post Polio Syndrome.
ScienceNovember 2, 201504:20 min
A young child receives an oral vaccination against polio

Polio - and then there were two

Just two countries, the WHO says, remain affected by the polio epidemic.
October 28, 2015
Nigeria Polio-Impfung

Nigeria polio-free for a year

For Nigeria, Friday marked the end of a full year without a single new case of polio.
July 24, 2015
Shakil Afridi

The 'bin Laden hunt doctor' case

DW examines the doctor Shakil Afridi's case and its implications for the South Asian nation's polio vaccination drive.
June 25, 2015
A Pakistani health worker gives a polio vaccine to a child in Lahore, Pakistan, Monday, June 4, 2012 (Photo: K.M. Chaudary/AP/dapd)

Polio declines in Pakistan

A military offensive in Pakistan's northwestern region has caused a major drop in polio cases.
June 5, 2015
Impfungen gegen Kinderlähmung in Pakistan

'Not a national policy'

Pakistan's polio eradication coordinator talks to DW about the detentions and the efforts to eradicate the virus.
March 4, 2015
Pakistan Impfung Impfhelfer Polio Impfung

Pakistan's fight against polio

DW examines why vaccination efforts in Pakistan have failed up to this point.
March 3, 2015

Talking Germany - Dergin Tokmak, Dancer and Acrobat

Dergin Tokmak caught polio as a very young boy. The disease could not slow him down forever, though. His crutches are an integral part of his acrobatic performances. Joining the Cirque du Soleil propelled him to global stardom. As he says himself: "I may not be able to walk, but I have at least learned to fly a bit".
CultureFebruary 16, 201531:45 min
A Pakistani health officer gives polio vaccine drops to a child during a polio vaccination campaign on October 03, 2013 in Rawalpindi, Pakistan (Photo: Muhammad Reza / Anadolu Agency)

Polio vaccinator killed in Pakistan

Gunmen have killed a polio vaccinator in Pakistan's Punjab province just a day after the Taliban claimed responsibility for attacking two policemen assigned to protect an immunization team in the country's northwest.
December 9, 2014
Impfungen gegen Kinderlähmung in Pakistan

Pakistani polio workers killed

Polio workers in Pakistan have demanded greater security before returning to work after gunmen murdered four vaccination team members. Pakistan is one of three countries where polio remains endemic.
November 26, 2014
Pakistani security officials escort the heath workers as they administer Polio vaccination to children in Peshawar, Pakistan, 15 January 2013 (Photo: EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB +++(c) dpa - Bildfunk+++)

A polio hub

Experts say that extremist violence in Pakistan is hampering the fight against the disease.
October 24, 2014
an engineer

Spectrum: polio, and the Brussels gadget guide

We turn our attentions away from big news diseases (Ebola) to a small news disease called polio. And we ask what we're doing on vaccines, and why it can re-emerge. Also, the journalist's guide to technology in Brussels.
ScienceOctober 13, 201430:00 min
Baby in Nepal getting an injectable Polio vaccine

Needles, no drops

There is no cure for polio, a disabling disease that persists in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria. And it spreads to countries thought to be polio-free. Health experts say we need to move away from the common oral vaccine to an injectable one.
ScienceOctober 13, 201407:03 min
Iraq Polio vaccination

Conflict and polio

Polio is on the rise in countries at conflict, such as Syria and Iraq. The disease was eradicated there 14 years ago. But regional conflict and a breakdown in public health services have brought polio back and, again, children are at risk.
ScienceOctober 13, 201404:37 min
Vaccination against Polio Photo: Gautam Dhimal

Nepal: injected polio vaccine

The oral polio vaccine has saved many lives. But experts say it's time for a new approach.
October 13, 2014
Pakistan Impfung Impfhelfer Polio Impfung

A tipping point

Lack of security isn't the only reason for Pakistan's failure to eradicate polio, says the WHO.
October 6, 2014
Pakistan Impfung Impfhelfer Polio Impfung

Pakistan hits annual polio high

With three months left in 2014, Pakistan has already detected a one-year record number of polio cases. Health officials have discovered 202 cases from January to October 3.
October 4, 2014

AfricaLink on Air - 02 October 2014

Nigeria’s electoral commission announces general elections dates +++ Feuding Lesotho political parties agree on a deal to end political stalemate +++ Polio vaccination campaign ends in Ghana with major success
October 2, 201424:59 min

AfricaLink on Air - 02 October 2014

Nigeria’s electoral commission announces general elections dates +++ Feuding Lesotho political parties agree on a deal to end political stalemate +++ Polio vaccination campaign ends in Ghana with major success
October 2, 2014
Irak Polio Impfung

Iraq Polio campaign

Since the conflict in Syria and Iraq, polio has been on the rise again in the region.
September 17, 201404:58 min

Struggle for safety

Polio campaign in Iraq - Work safety in Turkey - Ecuador Press freedom - Move to lift PKK ban
September 17, 201429:59 min
Oral polio vaccination Photo: REUTERS/Mohammad Ismail

Polio eradication: good news and bad

One recent study gives hope - the results of another are alarming, researchers say.
August 22, 2014
Political instability is threatening efforts to rid Nigeria of polio

Got to get vaccinated

As every expert on vaccines will tell you, the best vaccine is useless if no one gets vaccinated.
July 30, 2014

Got to get vaccinated!

As every expert on vaccines will tell you, the best vaccine is useless if no one gets vaccinated. Mitchell Warren, executive director of AVAC, tells us how big the problem is and how social media could help - if we could only harness it.
ScienceJuly 28, 201407:54 min
A polio worker administers polio vaccine to a child, in Peshawar, the provincial capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan, 24 October 2013.

'A tap for polio'

WHO spokeswoman Sona Bari explains how various international polio outbreaks are linked to Pakistan.
May 8, 2014
Indien Gesundheit Kinderlähmung Polio Patient in Delhi

WHO declares polio emergency

The World Health Organization has declared polio a "public health emergency." Civil war and conflict are thought to have led to the deadly disease's re-emergence in countries where it was believed eradicated.
May 5, 2014

Polio vaccine campaign begins

A massive polio vaccination campaign has been launched in Syria, Iraq and other countries to stem fears that the disease has spread across borders. UNICEF aims to protect 20 million children during the five-day campaign.
April 6, 2014
Impfungen gegen Kinderlähmung in Pakistan

Journal Reporter - The Dangers of Fighting Polio in Pakistan

Helpers in Danger: Fighting Polio in Pakistan A Report by Gábor Halász
March 8, 201412:07 min
Pakistan Impfung Impfhelfer Polio Impfung

11 killed in polio team attack

At least 11 Pakistani police officers have been killed in two bombings in the northwest of the country. The police officers were escorting a team of polio vaccinators at the time of the attack.
March 1, 2014