Germany has, for the first time in 30 years, found wild poliovirus type 1 in sewage samples, Reuters reports, with no human cases detected.
Wild Poliovirus Detected in German Sewage
Reuters reports that wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) was found in sewage samples in Germany for the first time in 30 years, the first detection of the virus via environmental monitoring since 2021. The Robert Koch Institute confirmed the finding and noted that no human infections have been recorded.
World Health Organization Response
The World Health Organization said this is the first such detection in the EU since 2010 and stressed that no country is immune to poliovirus spread. It added that the risk in Germany is very low, thanks to high vaccination coverage, and that cases found in sewage are isolated.
Past Polio Virus Incidences in Poland
The main sanitary authority reported in late December last year that the presence of a dangerous wild poliovirus had been detected in two Polish cities. A November case in Warsaw identified cVDPV2, a mutated vaccine‑derived poliovirus, in municipal sewage. A month later, type 2 poliovirus was again found in sewage in Rzeszów.
Polio Overview
Poliomyelitis is a highly contagious disease caused by an enterovirus. Anyone unvaccinated can be infected, with children under five at highest risk. Transmission occurs orally, via droplets, or through contaminated objects, with an incubation period of 7‑14 days. Symptoms range from flu‑like illness to meningitis, paralysis, or asymptomatic carriage.
