Paralysis Resource Guide - (Page 27) CONDITIONS POST-POLIO SYNDROME Poliomyelitis is a disease caused by a virus that attacks nerves that control motor function. Polio (infantile paralysis) has nearly been eradicated from nearly every country in the world since the approval of the Salk (1955) and Sabin (1962) vaccines. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates there are 12 million people worldwide with some degree of disability caused by poliomyelitis. The National Center for Health Statistics estimates there are 1 million polio survivors in the United States. About 433,000 of them reported paralysis resulting in some form of impairment. The last major outbreaks of polio in the United States were in the early 1950s. For years most polio survivors lived active lives, their memory of polio long forgotten, their health status stable. But by the late 1970s, survivors who were 20 or more years past their original polio began noting new problems, including fatigue, pain, breathing or swallowing problems, and additional weakness—medical professionals called this the “post-polio syndrome” (PPS). Some people experience PPS-related fatigue as a flu-like exhaustion that worsens as the day progresses. This type of fatigue can also increase during physical activity, and it may cause difficulty with concentration and memory. Others experience muscle weakness that increases with exercise and improves with rest. Current research indicates that the length of time one has lived with the residuals of polio is as much of a risk factor as age. It also appears that individuals who experienced the most severe original paralysis with the greatest functional recovery have more problems with PPS than others with less severe original involvement. The current consensus of opinion explaining post-polio symptoms focuses on the nerve cells and their corresponding muscle fibers. When the poliovirus destroyed or injured motor neurons, muscle fibers were orphaned and paralysis resulted. Polio survivors who regained movement did so because nerve cells recovered to a certain extent. Further recovery is attributed to the ability of non-affected neighboring nerve cells to “sprout” and reconnect to the orphaned muscles. Survivors who have lived for years with this restructured neuro27
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