Symptoms
Most people who catch the poliovirus don't have symptoms. About 1 in 4 people will have symptoms that look a lot like the flu, such as: Sore throat Feeling tired Upset stomach Fever Headache Back...
Causes
Most people who get infected with poliovirus (about 72 out of 100) will not have any visible symptoms. About 1 out of 4 people (or 25 out of 100) with poliovirus infection will have flu-like symptoms that may include: Sore throat; Fever; Tiredness; Nausea; Headache; Stomach pain; These symptoms usually last 2 to 5 days, then go away on their own.
Prevention
If you didn’t get polio vaccines as a child, you should get three shots in adulthood: First dose at any time. Second dose a month or two later. Final dose six to 12 months after the second. If you didn’t get all your vaccine doses during childhood, you should get the remaining shots as an adult. Who should get the vaccine?
Complications
People stood in line for hours waiting for the shot when it became available in 1955. I didn’t have the vaccine because I was immune. In the years that followed, there were so few polio cases that people only heard about the rare ones that would crop up somewhere in another state, and those stories were so unusual they’d be in the newspaper.
What was polio like when I was young?
Indeed, one myth of seventy years ago said that black people didn't get polio. The other clue lay in the increasing age of victims. Victims of the 1916 epidemic were generally older than three, but ninety-five percent were still under the age of ten.
Who was the first president to be diagnosed with polio?
Dec 18, 2019 · Most people who get infected with poliovirus do not have any symptoms. Some people (25 people out of 100) will have flu-like symptoms. These symptoms usually last 2 to 5 days. In rare cases, poliovirus infection can be very serious. About 1 out of 200 people will have weakness or paralysis in their arms, legs, or both.
What is polio (polio)?
Mar 29, 2020 · Old black and white pictures of rows and rows of children lying paralysed in huge iron lungs struck fear into every parent's heart. The cure - a pink dot of a vaccine delivered to school children ...
What are the symptoms of post-polio syndrome?
Oct 28, 2014 · The results were clear-cut: If you got the polio vaccine, you were protected; if you didn’t, you were not. When you have that kind of data, …
What happens if you don't treat polio?
Paralytic polio can lead to temporary or permanent muscle paralysis, disability, bone deformities and death.Dec 1, 2020
How does polio affect a person?
Polio is a viral disease which may affect the spinal cord causing muscle weakness and paralysis. The polio virus enters the body through the mouth, usually from hands contaminated with the stool of an infected person.
What are the symptoms of non paralytic polio?
Non-paralytic polio symptomsfever.sore throat.headache.vomiting.fatigue.back and neck pain.arm and leg stiffness.muscle tenderness and spasms.More items...•Dec 11, 2017
How long can you live with polio?
How Long Does Polio Last? People who have milder polio symptoms usually make a full recovery within 1–2 weeks. People whose symptoms are more severe can be weak or paralyzed for life, and some may die. After recovery, a few people might develop "post-polio syndrome" as long as 30–40 years after their initial illness.
Can polio affect you later in life?
Post-polio syndrome is a group of potentially disabling signs and symptoms that appear decades after the initial polio illness. These signs and symptoms usually appear between 30 to 40 years after having polio. Infection from the polio virus once caused paralysis and death.Mar 23, 2022
What type of doctor treats post-polio syndrome?
Neurologists are physicians who diagnose and treat disorders of the nervous system. They address diseases of the spinal cord, nerves, and muscles that affect the operation of the nervous system.
Can you have polio and not know it?
Polio symptoms generally appear between 3 and 21 days after infection. However, many people infected with poliovirus have no symptoms and may not even know they are affected. In mild polio cases, symptoms include: fever.
What causes non paralytic polio?
Nonparalytic polio (NPP) is commonly thought to be synonymous with "abortive polio," in which the poliovirus neither entered the central nervous system nor damaged neurons. Described are two epidemic illness-"The Summer Grippe" and Iceland disease-apparently caused by a low virulence but neuropathic type 2 poliovirus.
What are the 3 types of polio?
There are three wild types of poliovirus (WPV) – type 1, type 2, and type 3. People need to be protected against all three types of the virus in order to prevent polio disease and the polio vaccination is the best protection.
Why does polio affect the legs?
Related to this is the possible shortening of the limb. In a growing child, bone grows as a result of the muscle pull on it and/or weight bearing. Therefore, many who contracted polio as a growing child may have one arm or leg or foot that is shorter and smaller than the non-affected/less affected limb. New weakness.
Can you recover from post-polio syndrome?
There's currently no cure for post-polio syndrome, so treatment focuses on helping you manage your symptoms and improving your quality of life. People with the condition are often treated by a team of different healthcare professionals working together.
Why did polio affect the legs?
With the destruction of nerve cells, the muscles no longer receive signals from the brain or spinal cord; without nerve stimulation, the muscles atrophy, becoming weak, floppy and poorly controlled, and finally completely paralyzed.