CARPHA monitoring polio situation in the U.S.

‘Very scary’ is how a top health official is describing the re-emergence of polio, with a case recently detected in the US state of New York.

The main symptom associated with polio is paralysis and it is irreversible once an individual contracts the disease.

The Executive Director of the Caribbean Public Health Agency Dr. Joy St. John says it’s a situation that calls for serious vigilance in light of the direct air links shared between the Big Apple and Barbados and the region.

She tells CBC News CARPHA is monitoring the situation very closely.