ISLAMABAD – The number of polio cases in Pakistan for 2025 has risen to 31 following the confirmation of a positive sample from North Waziristan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to the Polio Eradication Programme, the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Islamabad confirmed the presence of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) in the district.
“This marks the fifth case reported from North Waziristan this year, bringing the total for 2025 to 31,” the programme said.
A laboratory official explained that although the sample was collected last year, it has been included in the 2025 count. He added that confirming a polio case can take up to three weeks, and several other samples are still under analysis, which could further increase the total number of cases.
The virus was detected in a four-month-old girl from Union Council Spinwam-2 in North Waziristan. Symptoms first appeared in December, and subsequent testing confirmed WPV1, making this the 31st case of the year.
In 2025, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported 20 cases, Sindh nine, while Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan each reported one case.
