Poliomyelitis, or more commonly referred to as polio, is a highly infectious viral disease having the largest impact on young children under the age of five years old. The disease, which travels via contaminated food and water, multiplies in the intestines and then has the potential to travel to the central nervous system causing irreversible damage in little to no time at all.
Some of the symptoms of poliomyelitis include fever, fatigue, stiffness of the neck, pain in the arms and legs and vomiting. More severe symptoms include paralysis which is often times permanent and can be fatal if the breathing muscles become powerless to the virus.
Poliomyelitis has no known cure, only vaccines to aid in the prevention of the virus. Several rounds of the vaccine are administered to children in their youngest years and are highly effective in the prevention of the disease for the remainder of their life. Two vaccines are used primarily to fight against polio and encourage immunity of the disease, the first being the Salk vaccine and the latter being the Sabin vaccine, both named for their founders.
The only treatment that is available is to simply treat the symptoms of the virus. Antibiotics for infection, analgesics for pain, moderate exercise and a balanced diet are specifics to a speedy and healthy recovery. More severe cases of poliomyelitis require long-term care in the form of braces, therapy, corrective shoes and sometimes orthopedic surgery.
Children in all countries are at risk for contracting poliomyelitis as long as one single child remains infected with the disease. The virus is a highly infectious and sometimes fatal disease that everyone should practice extreme caution with. Prevention is the key element with poliomyelitis; however, the prognosis for anyone who acquires the virus is promising.