Polio (Poliomyelitis / Infantile paralysis): Frequently Asked Questions
What is Polio?
Polio is an infectious disease caused by a virus that lives in the throat and intestinal tract. It is most often spread through person-to-person contact with the stool of an infected person and may also be spread through oral/nasal secretions. Polio used to be very common in the U.S. and caused severe illness in thousands of people each year before polio vaccine was introduced in 1955. ...
Source: www.cdc.gov
Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus. The virus invades the nervous system, and can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours. In some cases, the poliovirus can even cause death. Poliovirus is a communicable disease which cannot be controlled and therefore must be eradicated.
Source: www.who.int
Polio (also called poliomyelitis) 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 occurred in the first half of the 1900s before the vaccination, created by Jonas Salk, became widely 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. ...
Source: www.physioremedy.com
Polio (medically referred to as poliomyelitis) is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus. The virus enters the body through the mouth and multiplies in the intestine. Initial symptoms are fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck, and pain in the limbs. It can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours.
Source: www.poliochildren.org
Poliomyelitis or polio is an acute viral infection that, in its severe form, invades the nervous system and causes paralysis. In its mild form the disease produces mild symptoms (e.g., low-grade fever, malaise), or none. Also known as infantile paralysis, it is found worldwide, occurring mainly in children. The Salk vaccine (injected killed-virus vaccine) and the Sabin vaccine (oral live-virus vaccine) have greatly reduced the incidence of polio, nearly eradicating it from developed nations. ...
Source: www.epicwater.com
What is the requirement for polio?
Four doses of polio vaccines are required including one dose on or after the fourth birthday. If the third dose was administered on or after the fourth birthday only three doses are required.
Source: www.dshs.state.tx.us
What are the symptoms of polio?
Up to about 95 percent of people infected with polio have no symptoms. However, infected persons without symptoms can still spread the virus and cause others to develop polio. About four to eight percent of infected persons have minor symptoms such as fever, sore throat, upset stomach, or flu-like symptoms and have no paralysis or other serious symptoms. About one to two percent of infected persons develop aseptic meningitis with stiffness of the back, back or legs, and in some persons increased or abnormal sensations. ...
Source: www.cdc.gov
Up to about 95 percent of people infected with polio have no symptoms. However, infected persons without symptoms can still spread the virus and cause others to develop polio. About four to eight percent of infected persons have minor symptoms such as fever, sore throat, upset stomach, or flu-like symptoms and have no paralysis or other serious symptoms. About one to two percent of infected persons develop aseptic meningitis with stiffness of the back, back or legs, and in some persons increased or abnormal sensations. ...
Source: www.cdc.gov
What is pulse Polio Immunization?
Pulse Polio Immunization means intermittent polio immunization drive inthe community or region to vaccinate all susceptible children irrespective of their previous immunization status. Pulse Polio immunization helps to replace the wild virus (disease causing virus) by vaccine virus in community. Many countries like Brazil, Cuba and Israel have eradicated polio disease by adapting pulse polio approach.
Source: health.indiamart.com
What are the contraindication to Polio vaccination?
Contraindication to Polio are very few like immuno compromised host, severe diarrhoea and and acute febrile illness.
Source: health.indiamart.com
How can polio be prevented?
There is no cure for polio. Immunization with oral polio vaccine (OPV) is the only way to prevent polio. Polio vaccine, given multiple times, will reduce a child's risk of developing polio. Full immunization will reduce an individual's risk of developing polio. Full immunization will protect most people, however individuals can still contract the disease due to the failure of some individuals to respond to the vaccine. The only way to prevent polio in future generations is to eradicate the disease.
Source: www.who.int
Who is at risk of polio?
Polio can strike at any age, but usually affects children under five through contaminated drinking water. Under immunized children are at high risk of being paralysed by polio.
Source: www.who.int
What is post-polio syndrome?
Post-Polio Syndrome (PPS) is a condition that can strike polio survivors anywhere from 10 to 40 years after their recovery from polio. Symptoms include fatigue, slowly progressive muscle weakness, muscle and joint pain, and muscular atrophy. Doctors estimate the incidence of PPS at about 25 percent of the survivor population.
Source: www.poliochildren.org
Is polio completely eradicated?
Polio has not been completely eradicated. Although the number of cases has fallen over the years, some countries like India, Nigeria, Egypt, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia and Nigeria still report incidences of polio.
Source: www.medindia.net
When is the polio vaccine contraindicated?
Because of the small risk of paralytic polio in recipients and
Source: stason.org
How effective is the polio vaccine?
The Merck Manual and the Physician's Desk Reference give
Source: stason.org
How common was polio in the United States?
Polio was one of the most dreaded childhood diseases of the 20th Century in the United States. There were usually about 13,000 to 20,000 cases of paralytic polio reported each year in the US before the introduction of Salk inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) in 1955. Polio peaked in 1952 when there were more than 21,000 reported cases. The number of cases of polio decreased dramatically following introduction of the vaccine and the development of a national vaccination program. ...
Source: www.cdc.gov
How is polio transmitted?
"Polio is really very much a disease of children. First of all, this is the disease which spreads by what we call the fecal-oral route, so contaminated food or water can spread this disease, and children, of course, are the ones who often are most likely to have the least sanitary of habits and thus most efficiently transmit the virus between themselves. As a result, if you stop transmission of this virus between young children, you will stop transmission in a population. ...
Source: www.lastchild.org
How does polio paralyze?
"If a child somehow ingests the virus, that virus will then reproduce in the child's intestines and then is absorbed in the intestines and travels to the nerve cells in the spinal cord, sometimes even in the brain. It has an affinity to receptors in the spinal cord, and there it does its damage. It decimates nerve cells of the spinal cord and you become paralyzed. " Dr. David Sniadack World Health Organization
Source: www.lastchild.org
Why is polio targeted for eradication?
"There are some characteristics for a disease to be eradicable, like it infects only human beings so that there is no animal reservoir for that infectious agent. It's transmitted only from person to person without the intervention of a mosquito or the environment. And if you survive after the infection you have immunity forever, so you don't get sick again. And you have a good intervention like a vaccine. ...
Source: www.lastchild.org
Is polio eradication in Nigeria possible?
Yes. In fact the Government of Nigeria has committed to eradicating polio by end-2005. Achieving this target will require the full participation of all states. It will require multiple, high quality rounds of national immunization campaigns with coverage of greater than 90% of children under 5 (in all states). By the end of 2004, few states have achieved 80% coverage. ...
Source: www.who.int
Is polio only a problem in Nigeria?
India, Pakistan, Niger, Afghanistan and Egypt are also polio-endemic countries. As well, 13 other countries in Africa have been affected by poliovirus linked to Nigeria, including Benin, Botswana, Burkina-Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethipia, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, and Togo.
Source: www.who.int
What is keeping Nigeria from eradicating polio?
Failure to reach enough children during polio immunization campaigns. Missing the same children during polio immunization campaigns Insufficient public trust in polio immunization. This public mistrust is due to discrimination, poverty and other major health priorities going unaddressed. Lack of commitment from political leaders, traditional leaders, policy makers and the health sector. Routine immunization and primary health care systems are weak.
Source: www.who.int
Why does polio continue to persist?
Children continue to be crippled by poliovirus in Nigeria because too many children are under- immunized. Under-immunised children are the disease’s human host. Un-immunised children facilitate its transmission within and between communities. The only way to eliminate polio is to raise children’s immunity, permanently, so the virus can find no host from one settlement to another. ...
Source: www.who.int
What are the strategies used to eradicate polio?
There are four main strategies used to stop poliovirus: supplementary doses of oral polio vaccine to all children under five years of age during national immunization days (NIDs);
high infant immunization coverage with four doses of oral polio vaccine in the first year of life (routine immunization);
surveillance for wild poliovirus through reporting and laboratory testing of all cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) among children under fifteen years of age;
targeted “mop-up” campaigns once wild poliovirus transmissio... ...
Source: www.who.int
Why use oral polio vaccine?
Most countries use oral polio vaccine (OPV) because it has a unique ability to induce intestinal and local immunity. This means that it can actually interrupt wild poliovirus transmission in an environment. This is better than the IPV, an inactivated polio vaccine, which protects individuals against polio, but unlike OPV, cannot prevent the spread of wild poliovirus. Anyone can administer it. There is no need for a trained health care worker, nor for syringes and other materials. ...
Source: www.who.int
How can Nigeria eradicate polio?
Engaging everyone in society to reach every child - from the head of state to local religious and traditional leaders, media, health workers, teachers, vaccinators and parents. Everyone has a role to play in eradicating polio. Rebuilding trust in polio immunization at the community level. Strengthening routine immunization (and other health services) - the best prevention against polio. Boosting surveillance to immediately detect and respond to any cases of poliovirus. ...
Source: www.who.int
Does polio cause permanent disability?
One in 200 infections leads to permanent paralysis (usually in the legs). Among those paralyzed, 5%–10% die when their breathing muscles become immobilized.
Source: www.poliochildren.org
What is the Global Polio Eradication Initiative?
The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) strengthens the Expanded Programme on Immunization by supporting national efforts to eradicate a key vaccine-preventable childhood disease, poliomyelitis. The Initiative aims to stop polio transmission by the close of 2005 and certify the world polio-free by 2008. ...
Source: ciii.cpha.ca
Why did Rotary choose polio?
D uring the 1970s, Rotary International began a search to find a global humanitarian program where members could actively participate, not just by fundraising, but by volunteering in their communities and across the world — the cornerstone of Rotary's charter. The answer came in 1979 when Rotary launched a five-year polio immunization program in the Philippines along with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Philippine Ministry of Health. ...
Source: www.uxbridgerotary.com
