Monday, May 4, 2009

470 Children Vaccinated for Polio



April 25-29th, Arrow Web Hospital successfully offered polio vaccines to 470 children.  The hospital was supplied with the vaccines by the Kenyan Government as part of it's Emergency Polio Vaccination Campaign.

Polio is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus that lives in the human intestines.  It can also be found in human feces.  The virus is primarily spread by contact with the feces of an infected person-such as when changing diapers.  It can also be spread through contaminated food and water in areas where there are poor sanitation systems.  Once the virus enters the body, it multiplies in the throat and intestines.  It travels through the bloodstream and infects the brain and spinal cord.  Paralysis occurs because of this attack on the nervous system, destroying the nerves that send messages from the brain and muscles.  Vaccination is the best way to prevent polio, but once infected there is no cure.

No comments:

Post a Comment