An epidemiological analysis of acute flaccid paralysis and its surveillance system in Iraq, 1997-2011.

Background: Acute flaccid paralysis surveillance (AFP) is an essential strategy of the WHO's Polio Eradication Initiative. This is the first study conducted to estimate the incidence, etiology, distribution, and surveillance performance of AFP in Iraq.

Methods: Surveillance data about the AFP cases under the age of 15 years reported from Iraq during January 1997 to December 2011 were depended in the current study.

Guillain-Barré syndrome as a cause of acute flaccid paralysis in Iraqi children: a result of 15 years of nation-wide study.

Background: Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is the most common cause of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) in the post-poliomyelitis eradication era. This is the first study done to identify the epidemiology, clinical features, and outcome of GBS in Iraqi children over 15 years.

Methods: The surveillance database about AFP cases < 15 years reported during January 1997-December 2011 was used.