Polio dropped,# of world cases Acute Flaccid Paralysis rose

"Since 1996, there has been 608,832 cases of AFP worldwide 1996 (not counting the 26,014 cases of AFP from January 1st through May 21, 2010."

The numbers used in the worldwide program to eradicate polio were estimates using very loose standards that hypothesized the number of cases, and extrapolated them across large areas before vaccination campaigns were ignited. This was followed by much stricter diagnostic standards that weeded out Acute Flaccid Paralysis from other causes.

As the number of cases subjected to laboratory analysis rose, and the number of cases of polio dropped, the number of cases of acute flaccid paralysis rose.

Is there an epidemic of acute flaccid paralysis occurring due to various non-polio causes? Are any steps being taken to deal with this expanding problem?

Over 600,000 people coming down with some degree of paralysis in a period of 13 years seems like cause for concern.

The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), spearheaded by national governments, the World Health Organization (WHO), Rotary International, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and UNICEF, is the single-largest, internationally-coordinated public health project the world has ever known. Since 1988, more than two billion children around the world have been immunized against polio thanks to the unprecedented cooperation of more than 200 countries and 20 million volunteers, backed by an international investment of more than US$ 5 billion. [6]

$5,000,000,000.00 and 20 million volunteers.


What about the 608,832 cases of AFP worldwide since 1996 (not counting the 26,014 cases of AFP from January 1st through May 21, 2010)?

http://insidevaccines.com/wordpress/2010/06/02/polio-and-acute-flaccid-paraly...
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