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What Is Poliomyelitis?
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Poliomyelitis or polio as it is better
known is something we are familiar with. It is an acute
infectious viral disease that is characterized by symptoms
ranging from mild non paralytic infection to an extensive flaccid
paralysis of the voluntary muscles. Poliomyelitis is a type of
infantile paralysis. Age is a major predisposing factor, with
children and young adults being more likely to be affected by
polio.
There is a widespread belief that
patients who have been affected once are unlikely to develop
poliomyelitis again, but second attacks are known to occur, the causes
of which, at least in some cases, are viral strains differing immunologically from those responsible for the first attack.
How the virus enters the body
Researchers say that the polio virus is believed to enter the
body through the throat. From the alimentary tract, it is
absorbed into the blood and lymphatic system, from where it is
widely disseminated throughout the body. It ultimately reaches
the central nervous system.
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Early symptoms
Some of the early symptoms of poliomyelitis include mild
headache, fever, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea,
restlessness and drowsiness. Initially, the body temperature rises
slowly. In two or three days, the fever reaches a peak, but subsides
rapidly. In severe cases, the patient becomes irritable. He or she
develops pain in the back and limbs, muscle tenderness and a stiff
neck.
Paralytic poliomyelitis
Almost eighty per cent of the patients who develop poliomyelitis
recover within three to four days without the development of
paralysis. Paralytic poliomyelitis results when there is a
destruction of the anterior horn (motor nerve) cells of the spinal
cord. Cells that are destroyed are not replaced because the nerve
cells cannot regenerate. In the case of the cells that are not
severely injured, they recover their normal function in time. When
this happens, a corresponding restoration of muscle function usually
happens. Where there is paralysis, there is no predicting the
severity. It may range from transient weakness that can disappear to
complete and permanent paralysis, with associated progressive
atrophy of the unused muscles.
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A case of polio |
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Respiratory poliomyelitis and bulbar
poliomyelitis
Respiratory poliomyelitis is a condition where the virus injures
the upper part of the spinal cord, with resulting difficulties in
breathing. When the virus attacks the bulb (or the brainstem that is
situated just above the spinal cord) and the nerve centers that
control swallowing and talking are injured, it results in bulbar
poliomyelitis. Secretions collect in the throat and it may lead to
suffocation by blocking the airway.
Treatment
During the pre-paralytic stages, treatment includes complete bed
rest, isolation and careful observation. When there is paralysis,
passive movement of the limbs is advised in order that deformities
may be avoided. As muscle strength returns, the exercises are
increased. In the case of respiratory poliomyelitis, mechanical aids
such as the iron lung or the positive pressure ventilator, which
pumps air into the patient's lungs through a tracheotomy tube
inserted in the windpipe, are used. If there is accumulated
secretions in the throat (as can happen in the case of bulbar
poliomyelitis), it may be removed by a mechanical suction machine.
Poliomyelitis is known to have occurred as
an epidemic. In 1952, severe epidemics occurred in Denmark, Germany,
and Belgium. In Asia, outbreaks were reported in Mumbai, Singapore,
Japan, Korea, and the Philippines. However, it is well under control
now. The polio vaccine / vaccines administered orally or injected into the body have
helped change the picture. |
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