Following on the news that polio was detected in a second New York county, this latest finding raises the question "What the hell is going on?"
From the BBC:
All children aged one to nine and living in Greater London will be offered a polio vaccine after the virus was detected in sewage.
The virus, which can cause paralysis, has been found 116 times in London's waste water since February.
The urgent immunisation campaign will see nearly a million children offered the vaccine - including those already up to date with their jabs.
Parents and carers will be contacted by their GP within the next month.
Polio is seen as a disease of the past in the UK after the whole of Europe was declared polio-free in 2003.
However, what is happening now is slightly complicated as the samples detected are linked to a polio vaccine used in other countries.
Parts of the world still dealing with polio outbreaks use the oral polio vaccine - which is safe, but uses a live virus. This gives a huge amount of immunity, but has the potential to spread from person to person in areas where not a lot of people are protected.
This becomes a problem if it continues to spread, as the safe form of the virus used in the vaccine can mutate and evolve until it can once again lead to paralysis....
....MUCH MORE
Ummm, yeah, at least one of the victims in New York is now paralyzed.
