Today, we celebrate World Polio Day with the theme; "One Day. One Focus: Ending Polio - delivering on our promise of a polio-free world!" It is held annually on the 24th of October to create awareness on how to eradicate the virus.
So, what is Polio?
Polio (also known as poliomyelitis) is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus called poliovirus, that attacks the nervous system.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 1 in 200 polio infections will result in permanent paralysis, usually in the legs. About 5% to 10% of people paralyzed by polio die because they can't use their muscles to breathe.
Children younger than 5 years old are more likely to contract the virus than any other group.
How can this virus spread?
A person can spread the poliovirus even if they aren’t sick. The virus goes from person to person in two ways;
a) People with poliovirus in their bodies shed the virus through their feces (poop). The virus can then spread to other people when they swallow contaminated water or food. This exposure is more likely in areas that have poor hygiene or weak systems to clean water.
b) A person can also pick up the virus if the droplets from the cough or sneeze of an infected person enters the individual's nose or mouth.
Symptoms:
About 90% of people infected with poliovirus have no signs of the disease or just mild symptoms. If symptoms do occur, they usually appear about seven to 10 days after exposure to the virus. But the symptoms can take as long as 35 days to show up.
Early symptoms of polio last about 2 to 10 days:
a) Fatigue
b) Fever
c) Headache
d) Neck stiffness
e) Pain in the arms and legs
f) Vomiting
The disease can cause very serious problems and can sometimes develop hours after infection. These problems include;
a) Numbness
b) a feeling of pins and needles or tingling in the legs or arms.
c) Paralysis in the legs, arms or torso.
d) Trouble breathing because of muscle paralysis in the lungs.
e) Death when the muscles being used to breathe become paralyzed.
Prevention of the Polio Virus:
The best prevention against polio is a series of four vaccine shots in the arm or leg.
The recommended vaccination schedule for children is based on age
If one didn’t get polio vaccines as a child, he or she can get three shots of the vaccine in adulthood
If one didn’t get all the vaccine doses during childhood, he or she can get the remaining shots as an adult.
With all these in place, we can create a polio-free world!
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