Polio
Polio (poliomyelitis also) is a contagious, historically devastating disease that was virtually eliminated from
the Western hemisphere in the second half of the 20th Century. Although polio has plagued humans since ancient times, its
most extensive outbreak in the first half of the 1900s, before the vaccine was created by Jonas Salk
generally available in 1955.
At the height of the polio epidemic in 1952, nearly 60,000 cases with more than 3,000 deaths were reported in the United
States alone. However, with widespread vaccination, wild-type polio, or polio occurring through natural infection was
eliminated from the United States and the Western Hemisphere from 1979 until 1991.
Signs and symptoms
Polio is a viral disease in about 95% of cases, actually produces no symptoms (called asymptomatic polio).
In the 4% to 8% of the cases in which there are symptoms (so-called symptomatic polio), the disease is available in three forms:
a mild form called abortive polio (most people with this type can not even suspect that they have it because their disease is
limited to mild flu-like symptoms such as mild upper respiratory tract infection, diarrhea, fever, sore throat, and a general
To be feeling sick)
called a severe form of aseptic meningitis nonparalytic polio (1% -5% show neurological symptoms such as
such as sensitivity to light and neck stiffness)
a severe, debilitating form called paralytic polio (this occurs in 0.1% -2% of cases)
People who have abortive polio or infantile paralysis nonparalytic usually a full recovery. However, paralytic polio, as the name
suggests, causing paralysis - and can even lead to death.
In paralytic polio, the virus leaves the intestinal tract and enters the bloodstream, attacking the nerves (in abortive
or asymptomatic polio, not to get the virus usually through the intestinal tract). The virus can affect the nervous
over the muscles in the limbs and the muscles of respiration, leading to respiratory distress and paralysis
the arms and legs.
Contagiousness
Polio is transmitted primarily found by taking material with the virus in the stool (feces) contaminated. Not
Wash hands after using the restroom and drinking contaminated water were common culprits in the transmission of
Disease.
Prevention
In the United States, it is currently recommended that children have four doses of inactivated polio vaccine (IPV)
between 2 months and 6 years of age.
By 1964, the oral polio vaccine (OPV), followed by Albert Sabin had developed, will the recommended vaccine. OPV allowed large
Population immunized, because it was easy to manage, and it provided "contact" immunization, which means that
a person who is not immunized in contact with a recently immunized child was possibly become immune, too.
The problem with OPV was that in very rare cases, paralytic polio could either develop in immunized children or where
who came in contact with them. Since 1979 (when polio was eliminated in the United States), which is about 10
Have seen cases of polio each year in this country due to OPV.
IPV is a vaccine, the immune system of the body (through the production of antibodies) to fight the virus when stimulated
it comes into contact with it. IPV can not cause polio.
In an effort to eradicate all polio, including in cases related to the vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) decided where the only IPV vaccine in the United States. Currently, the CDC and American
Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends three doses of IPV each other before the age of 18 months given, and an IPV booster
The period between the ages of 4 to 6 when children enter school.
If you plan to travel outside the United States, especially in Africa and Asia (where polio still exists) are to be
Ensure that you and your children vaccinated have a complete set of polio.
Time
Although the acute illness usually lasts less than 2 weeks, could be damage to the nerves for a lifetime. In the past, some
Patients with polio never wilted full use of their limbs, which would appear. Those who have to fully recover
Maybe on post-polio syndrome (PPS) to develop as many as 30 to 40 years after contracting polio. In PPS, the damage
carried out to the nerve in the disease causes an acceleration of the normal progressive weakness due to aging.
Treatment
During the height of the polio epidemic, the standard treatment involved placing a patient with paralysis of the
Respiratory muscles in an "iron lung" - a great machine that actually pushed and pulled the chest muscles to make them
working. The damaged limbs were often kept immobilized because of the narrowness of the iron lung. In countries where polio
is still a concern, ventilators and some iron lungs are still used.
Historically, the home treatment for paralytic polio and abortive polio with neurological symptoms was not sufficient.
However, asymptomatic and mild cases of abortive polio with no neurological symptoms were usually treated like the flu,
with plenty of fluids and bed rest.
The future of polio
The World Health Organization (WHO) are working toward eradicating polio throughout the world. Significant progress made
already taken place. In the year 1988 355.000 cases of polio were reported in 125 countries. By the end of 2004, there were only
1,255 cases.
Four countries (Afghanistan, India, Nigeria and Pakistan) is still circulating polio, and the virus could
introduced in other countries. When the polio virus in a country where not enough people have imported vaccinated,
there is a risk that it will spread from person to person. That's what happened in some countries in Africa and
Asia. So until it's fixed, it is the world's important to continue vaccinating children against polio.