Polio is caused by a virus that invades the nervous system and can cause paralysis within hours. There are three types of wild poliovirus with only type 1 still circulating. Although polio is now only endemic in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the potential threat from its continued circulation means that the World Health Organization (WHO) still classifies it as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) was launched in 1988, bringing together governments, donors, and health workers to raise awareness of the disease and improve access to polio vaccines. This has led to a 99 per cent reduction in polio cases, and an estimated 20 million children have been prevented from contracting polio since the GPEI was launched.
Most people who contract polio do not have any symptoms. Some individuals develop mild, flu-like symptoms.
These symptoms typically last up to 10 days. In rare cases, polio can lead to more serious symptoms affecting the brain and nerves, including muscle weakness and paralysis, typically in the legs.
Polio can lead to long-term or lifelong difficulties. If the paralysis affects the muscles used for breathing, it can be life-threatening. Some patients ended up in iron lungs – coffin like contraptions which helped them breathe. Some individuals may be left with permanent paralysis or other disabilities.
Complications can include:
Some people who have had polio may develop symptoms again or their symptoms may worsen, sometimes decades later, which is known as post-polio syndrome. This can cause muscle weakness that deteriorates over time, leading to pain and fatigue, and possibly disability.
Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus that spreads easily from person to person. It usually spreads through contact with the faeces of an infected person. This can happen by not washing hands properly and then putting them in the mouth, or through contaminated food or water. The virus multiplies in the intestine. It can also spread through coughs and sneezes, though this is less common. Polio is more common in areas where there is poor access to clean water and sanitation.
There is no specific treatment for polio and care is supportive including:
Specialist help such as physiotherapy or surgery may be required if long-term problems arise from polio.
The best way to prevent polio is through vaccination. The polio vaccine is part of the routine childhood vaccination schedule. In the UK, the polio vaccine is given to children at eight, 12, and 16 weeks old as part of the 6-in-1 vaccine, at 3 years, 4 months as part of the 4-in-1 pre-school booster, and at 14 years old as part of the teenage booster.
In addition to routine vaccinations, a polio booster may be required before travelling to certain countries. It’s essential to seek advice from a travel clinic, GP, nurse, or pharmacist before travelling abroad.
Washing hands with soap and water or using hand sanitiser regularly throughout the day also helps to avoid catching and spreading viruses.
Polio is an ancient disease, with evidence of sufferers depicted in ancient Egyptian engravings. The first clinical description of the disease was produced by British physician Michael Underwood in 1789. In 1840, Dr Jacob Von Heine, a German orthopaedic doctor, determined that poliomyelitis was a distinct disease and theorised that it had an infectious cause. The poliovirus that causes the disease was identified in 1909 by Austrian immunologist Karl Landsteiner.
Polio vaccines were introduced as routine immunisations in the 1970s, and the number of cases dropped dramatically. But by the late 1980s, polio was still paralysing over 1,000 children a day around the world. Since the launch of the GPEI in 1988 wild poliovirus cases have decreased by over 99 per cent. Type 2 wild poliovirus was declared eradicated in 2015, and type 3 was declared eradicated in October 2019. Type 1 remains in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The discovery of poliovirus in sewers in London demonstrated that the disease could still be a threat – the virus was thought to have been shed by someone visiting and endemic country and there were no active cases of the disease.
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