THE Academy of Medicine Malaysia is saddened by the case of the three-month-old infant in Tuaran, Sabah who was diagnosed with polio, as announced by the Health Ministry in a statement on Dec 8. We applaud the transparency and rapid response of the ministry and the Sabah State Health Department, and thank all the health personnel involved in clinical, epidemiological and public health efforts.
This is the first case of polio in Malaysia since 1992, which raises our concerns about the state of immunisation in this country. In May 2012, the World Health Assembly declared ending polio as a “programmatic emergency for global public health”. The Polio Eradication and Endgame Strategic Plan 2013-2018 aimed to completely eradicate all forms of polio so that no child ever again becomes paralysed from the disease.
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