09/19/23: Public Health Topic: Polio
What is 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).
Symptoms:
Most people who get infected with poliovirus will not have any visible symptoms.
About 1 out of 4 people (or 25 out of 100) with poliovirus infection will have flu-like symptoms that can include:
Sore throat
Fever
Tiredness
Nausea
Headache
Stomach pain
These symptoms usually last 2 to 5 days, then go away on their own.
A smaller proportion of people with poliovirus infection will develop other, more serious symptoms that affect the brain and spinal cord:
Meningitis (infection of the covering of the spinal cord and/or brain)occurs in about 1–5 out of 100 people with poliovirus infection, depending on virus type
Paralysis (can’t move parts of the body) or weakness in the arms, legs, or both occurs in about 1 out of 200 people to 1 in 2000 people, depending on virus type
To learn more: What is Polio? (cdc.gov)
