11 children fall ill after consuming polio drops in Maharashtra

At least 11 children were taken ill and hospitalised after being administered polio drops at Waghola village in this district.

The children, aged between one to five years, were administered the oral polio dose by health workers at Phulambri tehsil of the district on Sunday.

Around 130 children were given the vaccine all through the day. Barely 24 hours after consuming it, four children started vomiting and developed fever. Parents then admitted them to the Government Medical College Hospital (GMCH) here. As the word spread, parents of a total of 66 wards, who were vaccinated, admitted them to hospital. However, only 11 children needed medical attention, according to doctors.

Dr SL Deshmukh of Paediatrics Department at GMCH on Monday said the condition of 11 children, admitted after complaints of vomiting and fever, was stable. Doctors at GMCH suspect that the polio doses were either outdated or might not have been stored properly resulting in reactions and sickness.

GMCH Dean Dr Shashank Dalvi said, "It is necessary to check the polio dose. The samples will have to be sent for checking before saying anything. Though they are stored in chilled boxes, some thing might have gone wrong. There is no need for parents to panic, as all the children are out of danger."

In 2008, four children died and four others fell critically ill after they were administered measles dose in the same village.