新奇事件簿 11亚洲国家消灭小儿麻痹症（在线收听）

The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced for the first time that South-East Asia is now free frompolio. The WHO certified 11 countries as being clear of the disease. The WHO website said: "This is the fourth of six WHO regions to be certified, marking an important step towards global eradication of polio – a highly infectious virus that attacks the nervous system and can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours. With this step, 80 per cent of the world's population now lives in certified polio-free regions." One of the newly-certified countries is India, which as recently as 2009, was home to almost 50 per cent of the world's polio cases. India hasn't seen a single polio case for the last three years.

世界卫生组织首次声明称东南亚已无小儿麻痹症。世卫组织证实称亚洲11国已经完全消除了该疾病。其官网称：“这是世卫组织所辖定的6个区域内第4个被证实无小儿麻痹症的地区，这也为全球消除该疾病迈出了重要的一步，小儿麻痹症是一种高传染性病毒，它可以攻击人类的神经系统，并在几小时之内造成全身瘫痪。目前，全球有80%的人口都居住在没有小儿麻痹症的地区。”最新证实无该疾病的地区有印度，印度在2009年就已消除，该国拥有全世界将近50%的麻痹症病例。在过去的三年中，印度没有发现一例麻痹症患者。

Polio is currently an incurable disease. It leads to paralysis of the limbs and can kill anyone who contracts it. Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, regional director for the WHO, said: "This is a momentous victory for the millions of health workers who have worked with governments, non-governmental organizations, civil society and international partners to eradicate polio from the region." She added: "It is a sign of what we can bequeath our children when we work together." Dr Singh also cautioned against becoming complacent in thefight against the disease. She said: "Until polio is globally eradicated, all countries are at risk and the region's polio-free status remains fragile."

目前，小儿麻痹症是一种无法治愈的疾病。该疾病将会导致肢体瘫痪，并最终致死。世卫组织的地区主任Poonam Khetrapal Singh博士说：“这对于上百万卫生工作者来说这是一次具有意义的胜利，这些工作者与政府、非政府组织、社会以及国际友人合作来消除该地区的疾病。”她还说：“这是我们对孩子们的馈赠。”Singh博士认为我们不能够因为这些成就就沾沾自喜。她说：“在没有完全消除该疾病之前，所有国家都还处于危险之中，这一状态在地区中显得十分脆弱。”