Infant dies from polio in Pakistan

Islamabad, Oct 1 A 10-month-old infant died after being confirmed with the wild poliovirus in North Waziristan district of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the Health Ministry said.

In a statement on Friday night, the Ministry said that the National Institute of Health had confirmed that the child had onset of paralysis on September 15 and suffered from disabilities on his left arm and neck, reports Xinhua news agency.

This was the 20th polio case of the year.

All the cases in Pakistan this year were detected in KP, with two patients from Lakki Marwat, 17 from North Waziristan and one from South Waziristan.

The children of Pakistan need more support than ever now, Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel was quoted as saying in the statement.

"The current humanitarian crisis in the country has increased the risk of wild polio transmission. It is crucial to support polio eradication now to protect them from further health concerns," the Minister added.

The poliovirus has been detected outside KP, however, it has not paralysed children elsewhere in Pakistan, according to the Ministry.

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