Polio

Unfortunately, pockets of polio transmission provide reservoirs for resurgence at any time, with even one traveller able to bring polio back to a polio-free country - Melinda Suchard

Polio
Polio

image by: End Polio Now

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A mutated virus, anti-vaxxers and a vulnerable population: how polio returned to the US

Polio’s return to the US resulted from the confluence of a complicated set of scientific and societal factors that allowed a mutated version of the virus to start circulating in a susceptible community. This is the story of a life-saving vaccine with an unfortunate loophole that produced that version of the virus, and a calculated anti-vaccine campaign that created a vulnerable population.

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 A mutated virus, anti-vaxxers and a vulnerable population: how polio returned to the US

The poliovirus found in New York is not the same virus that once ripped through urban communities. Thanks to vaccination, that original, “wild” poliovirus has been eliminated from all but two countries: Pakistan and Afghanistan. But paradoxically, most polio cases that emerge nowadays – including the one infecting the man from Rockland – are derived from the vaccine itself.

End Polio Now

Polio has been reduced by 99%. We are closer than ever to ending this crippling disease forever. Join Rotary on World Polio Day for a live global update on polio eradication.

Polio Survivors Association

There are approximately one million individuals in the U. S. who survived the great polio epidemics of the 1940s and 50s. While most polio survivors recovered a high degree of function, a great number were left with permanent, severe paralysis. The Polio Survivors Association was formed in 1975 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation to promote the well being and improve the quality of life for these severely disabled polio survivors.

PolioToday.org

PolioToday.org is published by the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. This website is designed to raise awareness of post-polio syndrome and to be a resource for polio survivors. Dr. Jonas Salk, who developed the first safe and effective polio vaccine, founded the Salk Institute in 1960.

British Polio Fellowship

The British Polio Fellowship is a charity dedicated to helping, supporting and empowering approximately 120,000 people in the UK living with the late effects of Polio and Post Polio Syndrome (PPS), a neurological condition. It provides information, welfare and support to those living with the effects to enable all to live full independent and integrated lives.

European Polio Union

The European Polio Union (EPU) is a European umbrella organisation for national organisations that support people who have had polio and for people that are currently coping with Post Polio Syndrome (PPS). The EPU aims, by bringing all those organisations together, to strengthen their force, to learn from each other and to help each other.

Polio Australia

Polio Australia is committed to standardising quality polio information and service provision across Australia for polio survivors. Polio Australia’s Vision is that all polio survivors in Australia have access to appropriate health care and the support required to maintain independence and make informed lifestyle choices.

Post-Polio Health International

Post-Polio Health International's mission is to enhance the lives and independence of polio survivors and home ventilator users through Education, Advocacy, Research and Networking.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Polio eradication is a top priority of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. As a major supporter of the GPEI, we contribute technical and financial resources to our GPEI partners to accelerate efforts to eradicate polio.

CDC

Polio is a crippling and potentially fatal infectious disease. There is no cure, but there are safe and effective vaccines. Therefore, the strategy to eradicate polio is based on preventing infection by immunizing every child to stop transmission and ultimately make the world polio free.

Patient

Post-polio syndrome (PPS) is the onset of new deterioration in function that may occur many years after recovery from acute poliomyelitis. PPS comprises various possible symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, joint and muscle pain, reduced respiratory function or dysphagia. PPS does not necessarily imply progressive deterioration, and can be helped by treatment. Management requires careful assessment and a multidisciplinary approach.

Polio Survivors in the 21st Century

The sole purpose of this site is to support worldwide polio survivors and anyone interested in.

WHO

Once polio is eradicated, the world can celebrate the delivery of a major global public good that will benefit all people equally, no matter where they live. Economic modelling has found that the eradication of polio would save at least US$ 40–50 billion over the next 20 years, mostly in low-income countries. Most importantly, success will mean that no child will ever again suffer the terrible effects of lifelong polio-paralysis.

Global Polio Eradication Initiative

Polio is a crippling and potentially fatal infectious disease. There is no cure, but there are safe and effective vaccines. The strategy to eradicate polio is therefore based on preventing infection by immunizing every child until transmission stops and the world is polio-free.

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