Vaccine-derived poliovirus has been detected in wastewater during routine surveillance of untreated sewage at a treatment plant in Perth. This is an environmental detection and the risk to the community remains very low. There are no confirmed cases of polio in Australia. High vaccination coverage provides strong protection and helps prevent the virus from spreading. In response to this detection, the WA Department of Health is increasing the frequency of wastewater poliovirus testing in the Perth metropolitan area and working with clinicians to enhance existing systems for […]

Western Australian residents are being urged to ensure they are up to date with their diphtheria vaccination in response to an outbreak of cases in regional WA. There have been 60 confirmed cases of diphtheria reported in regional WA since late December 2025, with the majority occurring in Aboriginal people. This includes 55 cases in the Kimberley, three in the Pilbara, and two cases in the Goldfields. Cases have primarily occurred in children and young adults, with a smaller number spread across […]

Vaccine-derived poliovirus has been detected in wastewater in Australia during routine surveillance of untreated sewage at a treatment plant in Perth. The vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 strain detected in Western Australia is found in parts of the world where the oral vaccine polio is used, and where low immunisation coverage and poor sanitation allow for easy transmission of the virus. Its detection reinforces the effectiveness of Australia’s robust disease surveillance and monitoring systems. While Australia remains polio-free and vaccination coverage […]