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    Poli and Its Effect

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    Bharath Kumar M
    Polio is a highly contagious viral disease that infects the nervous system and can cause paralysis. It is most common in children under 5. While 95% of cases cause no symptoms, it can lead to temporary or permanent paralysis in about 1% of cases. The polio virus is usually spread through contaminated food or water or direct contact with infected feces. Thanks to widespread vaccination, polio has been largely eradicated in many countries, though it still occurs occasionally in some parts of Asia and Africa.

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    Poli and Its Effect

    Uploaded by

    Bharath Kumar M
    28 views6 pages
    Polio is a highly contagious viral disease that infects the nervous system and can cause paralysis. It is most common in children under 5. While 95% of cases cause no symptoms, it can lead to temporary or permanent paralysis in about 1% of cases. The polio virus is usually spread through contaminated food or water or direct contact with infected feces. Thanks to widespread vaccination, polio has been largely eradicated in many countries, though it still occurs occasionally in some parts of Asia and Africa.

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    Polio is a highly contagious viral disease that infects the nervous system and can cause paralysis. It is most common in children under 5. While 95% of cases cause no symptoms, it can lead to temporary or permanent paralysis in about 1% of cases. The polio virus is usually spread through contaminated food or water or direct contact with infected feces. Thanks to widespread vaccination, polio has been largely eradicated in many countries, though it still occurs occasionally in some parts of Asia and Africa.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    28 views6 pages

    Poli and Its Effect

    Uploaded by

    Bharath Kumar M
    Polio is a highly contagious viral disease that infects the nervous system and can cause paralysis. It is most common in children under 5. While 95% of cases cause no symptoms, it can lead to temporary or permanent paralysis in about 1% of cases. The polio virus is usually spread through contaminated food or water or direct contact with infected feces. Thanks to widespread vaccination, polio has been largely eradicated in many countries, though it still occurs occasionally in some parts of Asia and Africa.

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    of 6

    What Is Polio?

    Polio (also known as poliomyelitis) is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus that attacks
    the nervous system. Children younger than 5 years old are more likely to contract the virus than
    any other group.
    According to the World Health Organization (WHO), one in 200 polio infections will result in
    permanent paralysis. However, the disease has been largely eradicated thanks to the development
    of a polio vaccine. The most recent WHO poll, in 2010, reported only 1,352 cases of polio
    worldwide. (WHO)
    Thanks to the polio vaccine, the U.S. has not had a reported case of polio since 1979. However,
    Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Nigeria still have frequent outbreaks.
    Part 2 of 7: Types
    Types of Polio

    There are three types of polio infections:

    Sub-clinical: Approximately 95 percent of polio cases are sub-clinical, and


    patients may not experience any symptoms. This form of polio does not
    affect the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord).

    Non-paralytic: This form, which does affect the central nervous system,
    produces only mild symptoms and does not result in paralysis.

    Paralytic: This is the rarest and most serious form of polio, which produces
    full or partial paralysis in the patient. There are three types of paralytic polio:
    spinal polio (affects the spine), bulbar polio (affects the brainstem), and
    bulbospinal polio (affects the spine and brainstem).

    Post-polio syndrome is a complication that can occur after a person has caught and recovered
    from poliovirus. Symptoms of the syndrome can appear up to 35 years after the polio infection.
    Part 3 of 7: Causes
    What Causes Polio?

    Poliovirus is often transmitted from person-to-person through fecal matter. People living in areas
    with limited access to running water or flush toilets often get the virus from drinking water
    contaminated by human waste that contains the virus.

    In addition, the virus can be spread by contaminated food or water or direct contact with another
    infected person. According to the May Clinic, the virus that causes polio is so contagious that
    anyone living with an infected person will likely become infected themselves. (Mayo Clinic)
    Pregnant women, people with weakened immune systems, such as HIV+ people, and young
    children are the most susceptible to the polio virus. If you have not been vaccinated, you increase
    your risk of contracting polio by:

    traveling to an area that has had a recent polio outbreak

    taking care of or living with someone infected with polio

    handling a laboratory specimen of the virus

    having your tonsils removed

    extreme stress, which can compromise immune system function

    Part 4 of 7: Symptoms
    Recognizing the Symptoms of Polio

    Sub-clinical polio may not trigger noticeable symptoms. In fact it is estimated that 95 to 99
    percent of infected patients are asymptomatic. In the five percent of polio cases in which patients
    do experience symptoms, they can range from mild to severe. Paralytic polio (polio that leads to
    paralysis) has more severe symptoms and can be fatal. Patients with non-paralytic polio
    experience mild, flu-like symptoms.
    Sub-Clinical Polio

    If patients do have symptoms, they usually last for 72 hours or less and may include:

    headache

    sore, red throat

    slight fever

    vomiting

    general discomfort

    Non-Paralytic Polio

    The symptoms of non paralytic polio may last for a couple of days to a week or two and includes

    fever

    sore throat in the absence of upper respiratory infection

    headache

    vomiting

    fatigue

    abnormal reflexes

    problems swallowing and/or breathing

    back and neck pain and stiffness, particularly neck stiffness with forward
    flexion of the neck

    arm and leg pain or stiffness

    muscle tenderness and spasms

    Paralytic Polio

    People with paralytic polio experience the symptoms associated with non-paralytic polio first.
    Soon after, the following symptoms appear:

    loss of reflexes

    severe spasms and muscle pain

    loose and floppy limbs, sometimes on just one side of the body, this is due to
    the weakness which results from the involvement of the spine

    sudden paralysis (temporary or permanent)

    deformed limbs (especially the hips, ankles, and feet due to prolonged
    weakenss and the lack of appropriate orthopedic bracing

    Full paralysis can eventually develop, but it is rare. Only about one percent of all polio cases will
    result in a person being permanently paralyzed. Of those patients who experience paralysis, five
    to 10 percent will die when the paralysis attacks the muscles that control breathing. (CDC)
    Post-Polio Syndrome

    The symptoms of post-polio syndrome are:

    continuing muscle and joint weakness

    muscle pain that gets worse

    becoming easily exhausted or fatigued

    muscle wasting, also called muscle atrophy

    trouble breathing and/or swallowing

    sleep related breathing problems (sleep apnea)

    becoming easily cold or

    new onset of weakness in previously uninvolved muscles

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