World Health Organization - Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean
WHO Country Office in Lebanon

WHO Collaborative Programme

Polio Eradication

History of Confirmed Polio Cases in Lebanon since 1990

The last indigenous case of poliomyelitis was in August 1994 in TYR, South of Lebanon. The patient was a 5 months old baby with no history of vaccination. This baby never traveled outside Lebanon. The virus isolated was a type 1 poliovirus. In response, the MOPH has organized two immunizations days. Since there were no indigenous cases, but there were two imported case, one in 1995 and one in January 2003 in Akkar, North of Lebanon.

History of the case

 The patient is a less than one-year boy born in May 2002 and has never received any vaccination. He was born in a family who according to local standards is practically wealthy and is able to afford adequate housing, education and food.

The family lives in a rural community in the District of Akkar in the North. The village is called Shaick Ayash near the borders of Syria.

Upon a visit performed by WHO team in Beirut, the mother describes that her son started back in January to have a severe fever reluctant to antipyretics accompanied by severe asthenia and anorexia. She has consulted several local physicians with no improvement so she took him to Tripoli, the Major city of the North, and at this stage the physician suspected a poliomyelitis and he notified the Active surveillance unit. The MOPH when notified assured the transfer of the boy to Beirut where he was hospitalized at the Makassed Hospital Intensive care unit and was managed appropriately. The rest of the family made out of three other kids was vaccinated during the last national immunization campaigns in school in April 2002.

In response to the importation, a national Immunization Campaign was done in May and June 2003 preceded by a sub national campaign in the district of Akkar. WHO has assisted technically and financially the Lebanese MOPH to execute the campaign in the four districts of Akkar, Dannieh, Hermel and Baalbeck

The coverage rate during the campaign was below the required percentage. A decision was made by WHO, UNICEF and MOPH to conduct another campaign in Lebanon in October 2003 with a house to house approach in the above mentioned districts as a way to obtain the needed coverage rate. 

The Campaign was executed on October 17th 2003 in the District of Minieh and Dannieh and on the 19th  of October 2003 in Akkar, Baalbeck and Hermel.

More than 3000 volunteers and 1000 army soldiers from the Military Service were involved in the vaccination process.