What were the early treatments for polio?
The use of devices such as rigid braces and body casts, which tended to cause muscle atrophy due to the limited movement of the user, were also touted as effective treatments. Massage and passive motion exercises were also used to treat polio victims.
How did they treat people with polio?
Once the virus that causes polio has infected a person, there is no treatment that will cure polio. Early diagnosis and supportive treatments such as bed rest, pain control, good nutrition, and physical therapy to prevent deformities from occurring over time can help reduce the long-term symptoms due to muscle loss.
How many years did it take to find a cure for polio?
It took almost 50 years for another scientific study to detail the features of the disease and its connection with the spinal cord.
Where did the cure for polio come from?
The first inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) was produced by Salk using virus grown on monkey kidney cells and inactivated with formalin. In 1954, the inactivated vaccine was tested in a placebo-controlled trial, which enrolled 1.6 million children in Canada, Finland and the United States[13].
How long did polio patients stay in iron lung?
Polio epidemic A polio patient with a paralyzed diaphragm would typically spend two weeks inside an iron lung while recovering.
Is polio vaccine lifelong?
Adults who are at increased risk of exposure to poliovirus and who have previously completed a routine series of polio vaccine (IPV or OPV) can receive one lifetime booster dose of IPV.
Why did polio vaccine leave a scar?
Why did scarring occur? Scars like the smallpox vaccine scar form due to the body's natural healing process. When the skin is injured (like it is with the smallpox vaccine), the body rapidly responds to repair the tissue.
Is polio a virus or disease?
Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a disabling and life-threatening disease caused by the poliovirus. The virus spreads from person to person and can infect a person's spinal cord, causing paralysis (can't move parts of the body).
How effective was the polio vaccine when it first came out?
The Salk vaccine had been 60–70% effective against PV1 (poliovirus type 1), over 90% effective against PV2 and PV3, and 94% effective against the development of bulbar polio. Soon after Salk's vaccine was licensed in 1955, children's vaccination campaigns were launched.
How long did polio vaccine take?
It was developed in 1961. OPV was recommended for use in the United States for almost 40 years, from 1963 until 2000. The results have been miraculous: Polio was eliminated from the United States in 1979 and from the Western Hemisphere in 1991. Since 2000, only IPV is recommended to prevent polio in the United States.