The government is on a high alert after a polio case was reported in Nairobi's Eastleigh area.
The health ministry said the
polio virus type 2 was reported on April 6.
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Through a statement to county directors of health, director medical services Jackson Kioko warned of the virus, that is medically known as circulating vaccine-derived polio virus type 2.
“On Friday, April 6, the ministry was notified by Kenya Medical Research Institute(KEMRI) of isolation of polio virus type 2 from an environmental sample collected on March 21 from one of the sites in Eastleigh, Kamukunji Sub-county," the statement read.
"Genetic sequencing of the isolate in CDC Atlanta laboratories subsequently confirmed it is circulating vaccine-derived polio type 2(CVDPV2),”read the alert.
Kenya established environmental sample surveillance in 2013 following the large a wild polio virus outbreak in Somalia that eventually led to the importation of 14 cases to Kenya.
Currently, nine sites located in Nairobi, Garissa, Mombasa and Kisumu counties are undertaking the activity.
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Kioko said that this type is known to cause paralysis in unprotected(un-immunized) persons just like the wild polio viruses.
He said the ministry has conducted investigations in Kamukunji sub county comprising of active AFP case search, assessment of population immunity, searching for tOPV and mOPV2 in health facilities.
The health care workers have been urged to be on high alert on patients presenting acute flaccid paralysis(AFP).
“Two stool samples should be collected (24 hours) from suspected cases and sent to KEMRI polio laboratory for testing,” Kioko said.
In February 2016 the Kenya Medical Research Institute destroyed the remaining stockpiles of one of the strains of poliovirus type 2.