What do you mean by polio?
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).
What’s the history of polio?
1894, first outbreak of polio in epidemic form in the U.S. occurs in Vermont, with 132 cases. 1908, Karl Landsteiner and Erwin Popper identify a virus as the cause of polio by transmitting the disease to a monkey. 1916, large epidemic of polio within the United States.
What is polio scientifically?
Poliomyelitis means “gray marrow inflammation,” referring to the propensity of the poliovirus to attack certain cells in the spinal cord and brainstem. The poliovirus is a picornavirus (family Picornaviridae), a member of a group known as enteroviruses that inhabits the human digestive tract.
What is polio and where did it come from?
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. Polio is more common in infants and young children and occurs under conditions of poor hygiene.
What is another name for polio?
Poliovirus is usually spread from person to person through infected fecal matter entering the mouth….
| Polio | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Poliomyelitis, infantile paralysis, Heine-Medin disease |
| A man with a smaller right leg due to poliomyelitis | |
| Pronunciation | /ˌpoʊlioʊˌmaɪəˈlaɪtɪs/ |
What causes polio?
Polio is caused by 1 of 3 types of the poliovirus. It often spreads due to contact with infected feces. This often happens from poor handwashing. It can also happen from eating or drinking contaminated food or water.
What does polio-free mean?
On 27 March 2014, the WHO South-East Asia Region was certified polio-free, meaning that transmission of wild poliovirus has been interrupted in this bloc of 11 countries stretching from Indonesia to India.
What caused polio?
Where is polio found?
Polio is still endemic in three countries, i.e., Pakistan, Nigeria and Afghanistan and is eradicated from the rest of the world. Pakistan is considered as the exporter of Wild Polio Virus (WPV) with highest number of polio outbreaks among endemic countries.
Where did polio virus came from?
No one knew how polio was transmitted or what caused it. There were wild theories that the virus spread from imported bananas or stray cats. There was no known cure or vaccine. For the next four decades, swimming pools and movie theaters closed during polio season for fear of this invisible enemy.
