The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health has confirmed the detection of three wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in Pakistan, bringing the number of total cases in the country this year to 59.

On Monday, December 2, the lab confirmed one polio case each from DI Khan, Karachi Keamari and Kashmore.

The genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the children show that they are genetically linked to the same WPV1 virus genetic cluster which has been prevalent in the country all year.

DI Khan, one of the seven polio endemic districts of southern KP, has now reported eight polio cases, Karachi Keamari has three cases, while Kashmore has the first polio case this year.