October 30, 2000
The Director of Health, Dr Margaret Chan, said today (October 30) that Hong Kong is proud to be associated with the achievement of the polio-free status of the Western Pacific Region of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Dr Chan made this remark after a meeting in Kyoto, Japan, of the Regional Commission for the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication in the Western Pacific. The meeting declared that the transmission of indigenous wild poliovirus had been interrupted in all 37 countries and areas of the WHO's Western Pacific Region, including Hong Kong.
Dr Chan said the success could be attributed to the efforts made by parents and the healthcare professionals in the public and private sectors, and to the technical support of WHO and other partner agencies.
She said: "Poliomyelitis used to be a public health problem causing significant morbidity and mortality in the 1950s and 1960s. With the introduction of oral polio vaccine in 1963, the number of cases in Hong Kong had dropped dramatically."
"The last case of poliomyelitis due to wild type was reported in 1983 and the last case of vaccine-associated poliomyelitis occurred in 1995."
Dr Chan said that in order to meet WHO's criteria for documentation for the polio free status, the National Certification Committee for Wild Poliovirus Eradication had been established in 1996 to oversee related activities. A highly sensitive surveillance system had been set up to detect, report and investigate all cases of acute flaccid paralysis.
She said that the SAR Government, working closely with other partners, would continue the territory's commitment to polio eradication through vigilant surveillance of acute flaccid paralysis, high immunization coverage for polio vaccine and effective laboratory support services.
The Kyoto meeting was attended by a delegation of Hong Kong, China consisting of Dr Chan, and the Chairman of the Hong Kong National Certification Committee for Wild Poliovirus Eradication, Professor Leung Nai-kong, and other members. It was also attended by more than 1,000 people from across the Western Pacific Region and around the world.