The number of confirmed cases of polio in Mozambique has risen to 13, according to Domingos Guihole, head of the Department of Surveillance in the Ministry of Health, cited by the television station, STV.

These cases were detected during the first and second rounds of polio vaccination earlier this year. The number of cases could increase because a further 35 suspected samples are awaiting testing in a reference laboratory in South Africa.

Guihole said that, during the vaccination process, "when the teams visit a house, one of the questions asked is whether any child in the household has experienced paralysis in a limb, or cannot move his limbs normally, or was born healthy, but with the passage of time became unable to move his limbs".

If the answer to any of these questions is positive, the health professionals examine the child, and, if the child meets the criteria, a date is set to collect a sample for laboratory testing.

So far most of the samples tested have proved negative for polio, but this is no reason for complacency. On the contrary, Guihole thought surveillance should be stepped up to prevent any possible spread of the disease. "We are working with the communities, strengthening the message that the polio virus could be circulating here", he said, "and if there are any cases that arouse suspicions, they should inform the authorities, because the current situation is worrying".

Of the 13 confirmed cases, four are from Tete province, from the districts of Moatize, Changara, Magoe and Tsangano. The other nine cases are from Cabo Delgado, Nampula, Zambezia and Manica provinces.

On 15 August, the Malawian health authorities detected another case of the wild poliovirus in a child, believed to be a Mozambican.

Mozambique was declared free of polio in July 2016, but the disease reappeared in May this year.