Sat Nov 02 16:00:00 UTC 2024: ## WHO’s Polio Registry Raises Transparency Concerns: Missing Data on Vaccine-Derived Poliovirus

**New Delhi, India (November 2, 2024):** The World Health Organization (WHO) has been accused of lacking transparency in its reporting of polio cases, particularly those related to vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV). While the WHO maintains a registry for wild poliovirus and circulating VDPV cases, it fails to include data on two crucial categories: immune-deficiency associated VDPV (iVDPV) and ambiguous VDPV (aVDPV).

The issue came to light following the WHO’s delayed publication of a recent polio case in Meghalaya, India. Despite confirming that the child involved was not immune-deficient and the virus was not circulating in the community, the WHO has not released details of the case.

This lack of transparency is further compounded by the WHO’s omission of iVDPV and aVDPV cases from its registry. This omission raises concerns about the organization’s intent, as it is aware that iVDPV cases serve as potential reservoirs for neurovirulent VDPV strains, posing a significant threat to the global polio eradication campaign.

The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), a public-private partnership led by national governments and six partners, including the WHO, maintains a similar registry. While the GPEI registry includes data on circulating VDPVs, it also omits iVDPV and aVDPV cases. However, the GPEI periodically publishes a list of iVDPV cases in the World Epidemiological Record (WER) and the U.S. CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), though the last such publication was in July 2020.

The absence of complete and transparent reporting of VDPV cases, particularly iVDPV cases, raises serious concerns about the potential for undetected outbreaks and the effectiveness of global polio eradication efforts. Experts urge the WHO to provide a comprehensive and publicly accessible registry of all VDPV categories to ensure transparency and enable accurate assessments of the risks associated with VDPV strains.

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