Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China

China: Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes was 2.18 cases per 100,000 children in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
2.18 cases per 100,000 children
Change on year
down 42.3%
World rank
78th
of 173 countries
All-time high
4.02 cases per 100,000 children
in 2019
All-time low
1.5 cases per 100,000 children
in 2003
Years of data
23
2001–2023

Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China, 2001–2023

012342001201220232001: 1.6 cases per 100,000 children2002: 1.6 cases per 100,000 children2003: 1.5 cases per 100,000 children2004: 1.9 cases per 100,000 children2005: 1.9 cases per 100,000 children2006: 2.1 cases per 100,000 children2007: 1.9 cases per 100,000 children2008: 1.8 cases per 100,000 children2009: 2 cases per 100,000 children2010: 2 cases per 100,000 children2011: 2.3 cases per 100,000 children2012: 2.4 cases per 100,000 children2013: 2.2 cases per 100,000 children2014: 2.2 cases per 100,000 children2015: 2 cases per 100,000 children2016: 2.2 cases per 100,000 children2017: 2 cases per 100,000 children2018: 2 cases per 100,000 children2019: 4 cases per 100,000 children2020: 3.3 cases per 100,000 children2021: 3.5 cases per 100,000 children2022: 3.8 cases per 100,000 children2023: 2.2 cases per 100,000 children

Source: World Health Organization (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in cases per 100,000 children.

Analysis

In 2023, rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China stood at 2.18 cases per 100,000 children.

That represents a change of down 42.3% on the previous year and up 0.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China peaked at 4.02 cases per 100,000 children in 2019 and was at its lowest, 1.5 cases per 100,000 children, in 2003.

China ranks 78th of 173 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.

Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China, year by year

Annual values for Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China, 2001 to 2023.
Year cases per 100,000 children Change
2001 1.58 cases per 100,000 children —
2002 1.59 cases per 100,000 children +0.6%
2003 1.5 cases per 100,000 children -5.7%
2004 1.86 cases per 100,000 children +24.0%
2005 1.91 cases per 100,000 children +2.7%
2006 2.13 cases per 100,000 children +11.5%
2007 1.88 cases per 100,000 children -11.7%
2008 1.84 cases per 100,000 children -2.1%
2009 2.01 cases per 100,000 children +9.2%
2010 1.98 cases per 100,000 children -1.5%
2011 2.33 cases per 100,000 children +17.7%
2012 2.36 cases per 100,000 children +1.3%
2013 2.16 cases per 100,000 children -8.5%
2014 2.23 cases per 100,000 children +3.2%
2015 1.98 cases per 100,000 children -11.2%
2016 2.21 cases per 100,000 children +11.6%
2017 2.04 cases per 100,000 children -7.7%
2018 2.05 cases per 100,000 children +0.5%
2019 4.02 cases per 100,000 children +96.1%
2020 3.28 cases per 100,000 children -18.4%
2021 3.47 cases per 100,000 children +5.8%
2022 3.78 cases per 100,000 children +8.9%
2023 2.18 cases per 100,000 children -42.3%

China compared with similar countries

  • China's 2.18 cases per 100,000 children is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.9 cases per 100,000 children, 1.1× the median. (45 countries reporting)
  • China's 2.18 cases per 100,000 children is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.27 cases per 100,000 children, 1.7× the median. (21 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2019 +96.1% 2.05 cases per 100,000 children 4.02 cases per 100,000 children

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 1.81 cases per 100,000 children 1.5 cases per 100,000 children 2.13 cases per 100,000 children 9
2010s 2.34 cases per 100,000 children 1.98 cases per 100,000 children 4.02 cases per 100,000 children 10
2020s 3.18 cases per 100,000 children 2.18 cases per 100,000 children 3.78 cases per 100,000 children 4

Countries ranked near China

  1. 75 Sri Lanka 2.29 cases per 100,000 children compare
  2. 76 Papua New Guinea 2.25 cases per 100,000 children compare
  3. 77 Myanmar 2.2 cases per 100,000 children compare
  4. 79 Turkmenistan 2.09 cases per 100,000 children compare
  5. 80 Mexico 2.08 cases per 100,000 children compare
  6. 81 Eswatini 2.07 cases per 100,000 children compare

See the full ranking of 173 places →

More reference data data for China

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China?
Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China was 2.18 cases per 100,000 children in 2023, according to World Health Organization (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes recorded in China?
The highest recorded value was 4.02 cases per 100,000 children in 2019.
What is the lowest rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes recorded in China?
The lowest recorded value was 1.5 cases per 100,000 children in 2003.
How does China rank for rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes?
China ranks 78th out of 173 countries with data for 2023.
Is rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes rising or falling in China?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this China data come from?
The figures come from World Health Organization (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes in China. Statizoid, drawing on World Health Organization (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 29 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/rate-of-acute-flaccid-paralysis-from-non-polio-causes/china/

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About this data

Indicator
Rate of acute flaccid paralysis from non-polio causes
Unit
cases per 100,000 children
Source
World Health Organization (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
173 places, 3,714 data points, 2001–2023
Last refreshed

Number of cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) per 100,000 children aged 15 or under, not attributed to polio, that were detected and reported to the WHO.