Outbreak of poliomyelitis--Kunduz, Afghanistan, 1999.

Since May 10, 1999, 26 cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP), including five cases with isolation of wild poliovirus type 1 and one with type 3, have been reported from Kunduz province in northern Afghanistan. Fifteen (54%) case-patients resided in Kunduz city, and the remaining patients resided in the districts surrounding Kunduz. Although the exact causes for the outbreak are not known, the discontinuation of polio vaccination activities in mid-1997 in northern Afghanistan because of ongoing civil conflict may have facilitated the outbreak.