Nature: Within reach: A redoubling of efforts should swiftly eradicate polio from its last strongholds
“The global effort to eradicate poliomyelitis has been spectacularly successful, eliminating 99 percent of cases in its 26-year history. But that progress has begun to unravel in the past 18 months, with outbreaks in East and West Africa and in the Middle East. The lesson is clear: as long as the virus is allowed to persist in the three countries in which it remains endemic — Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Nigeria — exports of the disease will continue to affect other countries. A determined effort is needed to eradicate the virus from these endemic countries, and fast…” (7/16).