Seroprevalence to Polio in Personnel at a Virology Institute

Objectives: To determine the level of immunity to polio in adult personnel at the National Institute for Virology (NIV), South Africa.

Methods: Polio neutralizing antibodies results on 776 NIV staff members tested between 1979 and 1999 and seroresponses in seronegative personnel given a booster vaccination were analysed.

Results: 613 of the 776 (79%) personnel had neutralizing polio antibodies to all three types, independent of age, gender, race or job category. Types 1 and 2 antibodies were found in 92% and 94%, respectively, but type 3 was less prevalent at 87%. Of the 93 persons seronegative to one or more types, 13 failed to respond to the first booster vaccination and 8 remained as non-responders after two booster vaccinations. Of the 19 personnel who were bled four days after booster vaccination, 16 (84%) had already developed an antibody response.

Conclusions: Most (79%) adult laboratory personnel retained detectable levels of neutralizing antibodies to polio, independent of age, gender, race or job category, and even in those persons lacking detectable antibodies, most (84%) responded with a secondary immune response. Nevertheless the immunity gap, particularly to type 3, mandates routine screening of personnel potentially exposed to wild-type polio virus and a booster vaccination for seronegatives.