Polio is the commonly used term for Poliomyelitis, a “viral disease that can cause paralysis or death when it invades motor neurons” (About 1). Like all viruses, there is no cure for polio, a disease to which children are especially susceptible. Thanks to a variety of vaccines developed in the 1940s and 1950s, incidences of new cases of the viral disease “peaked in the US in the 1950s” (About 1).
When it comes to the cause of poliomyelitis, researchers have discovered that the disease is the result of a virus off the genus Enterovirus. Enterovirus invades the RNA of humans, a virus that is commonly transmitted through the oral/fecal route. Overcrowding, poor sanitation, and other environmental factors are responsible for the spread of the virus, which causes the serious illness of polio which can be spread by close contact like kissing or from contaminated drinking water.
Once the virus gains access to the body, it begins to reproduce in the gastrointestinal tract. From there it enters the bloodstream and is permitted access to other regions of the body. The virus responsible for poliomyelitis is thought to have been in existence since Biblical times, but it was not until the early 19th century that epidemics of polio began to occur.
Approximately 1% to 2% of people infected with the polio virus develop neurologic signs and symptoms (About 3). The symptoms associated with polio virus infection typically include: fever, muscle ache, gastrointestinal difficulties, headache, vomiting, and eventually paralysis. Paralytic polio occurs if the polio virus is able to infect the motor neurons that control muscle movement. If paralysis occurs because of the polio virus the disease is known as acute paralytic poliomyelitis (APP) “APP was fatal in 5 to 10 percent of cases; with better respiratory management, this rate is lower now” (About 3).
Where etiology of polio is concerned, the Wiechers and Hubbell theo...