Polio Cases More Than Double in Eastern India

Since 2006, the number of Polio cases in Eastern India have more than doubled. The dramatic rise in these cases could be due to the severe monsoon season flooding in the region. Hundreds of thousands of people were displaced in the region due to the flooding. Stagnant pools of water were left behind by floodwaters which contaminated water wells and left breeding grounds for the disease. Federal health officials, on the other hand, attribute the sharp increase of Polio cases to the poor delivery of vaccines by state health staff.

How do people get Polio?

The Polio virus lives in the throat and intestinal tract of infected persons. The virus enters through the mouth usually from contamination from the stool of an infected person. Eating utensils can spread the virus.

What are the symptoms of Polio?

The Polio virus attacks the nerve cells that control muscle movements. Short term symptoms include headaches, tiredness, fever, and stiff neck and muscle pain. Long term symptoms include paralysis, most commonly in the legs.

What is the treatment for Polio?

There is no treatment for Polio. It is highly recommended that Polio patients receive expert care, especially at the beginning of the illness. Mild cases of abortive Polio with no neurological symptoms are usually treated like the flu, with plenty of fluids and bed rest. Contact a health care professional if you have any questions.

Prevention of Polio

Researchers highly recommend that people wash their hands after using the bathroom and do not drink from contaminated water supplies where the virus could be breeding.

When traveling it is highly recommended that people get a Polio vaccine, especially if traveling to high-risk areas. Relief workers, health care professionals and those traveling to remote areas are considered to be high-risk individuals.

Polio Vaccine

There are two types of Polio vaccines available: Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) and Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV). OPV is made with a live but weakened virus.

The first Polio vaccine was developed by Jonas Salk in 1959 which consisted of an injection of dead Polio virus. The Salk vaccine, or inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV), was licensed in the United States in November 1987, and is currently the vaccine of choice in the United States. IPV is recommended for children given at 2, 4, and 12 months of age. Side effects usually include pain at the injection site. Booster doses of Polio vaccine are recommended for people traveling to areas of the world where Polio is still a problem.

Eight years after Salk's success, Albert Sabin developed the oral polio vaccine (OPV). In 1963, trivalent OPV was licensed, and became the vaccine of choice in the United States and most other countries of the world until 1987. OPV is made with a live but weakened virus. Although possible, there have been very few cases of Polio caused by the OPV vaccination since 1979.

Antibiotic Injections after the Polio Vaccine

Researchers in Romania demonstrated that injections of antibiotics following the Polio vaccine could actually cause Polio. These researchers recommend that antibiotic injections be avoided for thirty days after a Polio vaccination.

Which Polio vaccine is best?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), children should receive the Salk inject able vaccine (IPV) because of the very small chance that the Sabine oral dose (OPV) could lead to a Polio infection.

Polio on the Decline in the U.S.

For the second straight year, Polio is declining sharply in the United States. Scientists believe this is due to the improvements of the Salk vaccine, which was originally produced in 1959. The overall decline of Polio in the U.S. is almost certainly attributable to vaccination.

If you are traveling to a high-risk area any time soon, talk to your doctor about it.

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