CDC issues travel warning: Polio detected in several countries

Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a level two travel notice about global polio, encouraging travelers to practice enhanced precautions when traveling internationally. Because of this, Dr. Jill Weatherhead explains why it is so important to be up to date on all of your recommended vaccines before you travel anywhere. 

“This advisory is intended to protect travelers during upcoming spring and summer travel. It highlights the spread and detection of the virus in new areas [30 countries] over the past year, including countries in Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Eastern Mediterranean and Pacific areas,” Weatherhead said. “For example, most people don’t think about getting an extra polio vaccine booster when traveling to Europe.”

Polio is a highly contagious virus transmitted through the oral-fecal route, meaning you ingest the virus shed in feces from an infected person. A person can be directly infected with polio through human-to-human transmission or by ingesting polio-contaminated food or beverages.  

“There are three different strains of the virus; two of them have been eradicated globally,” Weatherhead said. 

Once infected, most people won’t know they have poliovirus.  

“About 25% of people will have flu-like symptoms. A small portion will develop a neurologic disease, from infection of the central nervous system including the motor nerves of the spinal cord. This is very dangerous because it can lead to permanent disability or death,” Weatherhead said.  

Since 2000, the U.S. administers an inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), which provides more than 99% protection against polioviruses after completing the vaccine series, and contributes to achievement of herd immunity. IPV is part of our universal childhood vaccine schedule in the U.S., so most children who are up to date on their childhood vaccines have received four doses and are completely vaccinated. Unvaccinated adults need three doses of IPV as a baseline before they travel anywhere. People who received vaccination prior to 2000 likely received the oral polio vaccine (OPV), which also offers excellent long-term protection, and are considered fully vaccinated. 

“However, there are certain groups that would require a one-time booster as an adult. They include high-risk laboratory workers, healthcare workers treating patients with polio, public health workers during an outbreak and those who are traveling to any of the 30 countries with ongoing detection of circulating polio virus,” Weatherhead said.

Prevention is key because there is no treatment or cure once you have been infected with the poliovirus.