56th Anti-Polio Vaccination Campaign Starts in Cuba

The campaign is divided in two stages, one from February 20th to 26th and another from April 17^th to 23^rd, said the head of the Cuban vaccination program

The Cuban Public Health system has announced the beginning of the 56th National Campaign of Oral Vaccination against Poliomyelitis on February 20^th, when over 470 000 children will be vaccinated.

The campaign is divided in two stages, one from February 20th to 26th and another from April 17^th to 23^rd, said head of the Cuban vaccination program Lena Lopez in a press conference. Meanwhile, 108,110 children until nine years old will take the second oral dosage in the second stage.

Lopez said that all vaccination sites in Cuba will be involved in the next campaign against poliomyelitis.

Adviser for the National program of Immunization Angel Galindo reiterated that before the victory of the Cuban Revolution poliomyelitis claimed the lives of many children, while nowadays there is not a single case of that disease.

According to the World Health Organization, poliomyelitis is a highly contagious disease that mainly affects very young children, caused by a virus that attacks the nervous system and may cause paralysis in few hours.