Polio drops: when does your child need them?

24 October is World Polio Day. India has been polio-free for more than ten years, thanks to millions of parents who brought their children for polio drops. Keeping it that way depends on every child getting their drops on time.

This note explains when children need polio drops and where families can get them.

What polio is

Polio is an infection caused by a virus that spreads from person to person, mainly through traces of stool, for example on unwashed hands, and less often through contaminated water or food. It mostly affects children under 5 years of age. In some children it damages the nerves and causes lifelong weakness of the legs, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO notes that several doses of polio vaccine can protect a child for life.

Why drops are still needed in a polio-free India

India reported its last polio case on 13 January 2011, in Howrah, West Bengal. WHO certified the South-East Asia Region, including India, polio-free on 27 March 2014.

Polio still spreads in Afghanistan and Pakistan, notes WHO. As long as the virus exists anywhere, it can travel. WHO advises that all children up to 5 years of age stay protected until polio is wiped out worldwide.

When your child needs polio drops

Under India's National Immunization Schedule (Ministry of Health and Family Welfare), the oral polio vaccine (OPV) is given:

• At birth: the first drops (OPV-0), at birth or as early as possible within the first 15 days.
• At 6, 10 and 14 weeks: three more doses, given along with the other vaccines due at these visits.
• At 16 to 24 months: a booster dose.

In the government programme, babies also get the injectable polio vaccine (IPV) in small doses at 6 and 14 weeks and at 9 months, as described in the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) Guidebook on Immunization. Drops and injection work together.

Pulse Polio days: drops for every child under 5

On Pulse Polio days, every child from birth to 5 years of age gets polio drops, even if the child has already had all scheduled doses. The IAP Guidebook advises that all children under 5 should receive drops on every such campaign day. The extra drops add to the protection of the child and of the whole community.

Where to get polio drops

Polio drops are part of the government's Universal Immunization Programme. They are given at government hospitals, primary and urban health centres, and immunization sessions held near your home. On Pulse Polio days, special polio booths are also set up; your local health worker can tell you where the nearest one is.

What you can do

1. Take your child to your nearest government vaccination centre or immunization session for each dose of polio drops on its due date.
2. Ask your local ASHA or ANM worker, or your anganwadi, about the dates of the next immunization session and the next Pulse Polio day.
3. On every Pulse Polio day, take each child under 5 to the polio booth, even if their vaccination card is complete.
4. Make sure every dose is written on your child's vaccination card, and keep the card safe.
5. If a dose was missed, take your child for it as soon as you can. The schedule continues from where it stopped; it does not need to be restarted.
6. If your child had a vaccine at a private clinic, still go for Pulse Polio drops on campaign days.