GPEI Global Polio Eradication Institute removes nigeria from list of Polio epidemic countries

The World Health Organization has removed Nigeria from its list of Polio endemic countries in what has been regarded as a ‘milestone’ in the quest to eradicate the disease. WHO made the announcement at a meeting of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) in New York. This comes after Nigeria went more than a year without a case of wild-naturally occurring polio. Before a country is declared polio free, it has to go three years without any cases of the disease. This decision now means that only two countries, Pakistan and Afghanistan, remain polio endemic in the world. Polio is spread by poor sanitation and contaminated water, and usually affects children. The virus attacks the nervous system and can cause irreversible paralysis, usually of the legs, within hours.