Poliomyelitis In The United States

Poliomyelitis was a highly infectious disease that spread through many Americans in the early 20th century. As a matter of fact, over 3,000 Americans died of the disease each year. Families were overwhelmingly desperate for doctors to find a cure. When one suffered from polio, they generally experienced painful symptoms which included not only fatigue and muscle weakness, but even death. Therefore, when the polio vaccine was introduced by scientist Jonas Salk in 1953, it greatly contributed to Americans in numerous positive ways. Environmentally, the vaccine saved countless young American lives affected by the disease thus decreasing American mortality rates. Socially, the polio vaccine convenienced families who were either directly afflicted

If you were to question any public health professional as to what the greatest biomedical achievement of the last century was, they would likely struggle to find a more influential achievement than the development of vaccines. The struggling breaths of whooping cough, the horrendous birth defects caused by rubella, and the clunky braces used by children paralyzed by polio, all are only thought of as occurrences of the past by many Americans. Many find it hard to believe that less than a century ago; the infant mortality rate was a massive 20 percent (Alexandra, Markel, 2005). Fortunately, many of these devastating diseases have been eradicated because of the development and widespread use of vaccines. The history of vaccines is, however, very complex. The growth widespread use of vaccines requires a balance of scientific ingenuity and social acceptance. Vaccines historically have, and continue to, cause strong scientific, social, and cultural reactions.

Polio is a deadly virus that hit america in the 1930s (Franklin Roosevelt founds...N.P.). Franklin Roosevelt founds March of Dimes Polio is also known to be a crippling disease, which affected Franklin Delano Roosevelt at the age of 39. But, on January the third he created a foundation for a cure for polio called March of Dimes(Franklin Roosevelt founds March of Dimes N.P.).10 years later he created a foundation,Warm Springs Foundation, which focus entirely on the treatment of people with polio(Franklin Roosevelt founds March of Dimes N.P.). In 1934, a business, Henry Doherty donated $25,000 to establish a series of birthday balls(Franklin Roosevelt founds March of Dimes N.P.). In the first year they raised 1 million dollars off

In 1947, the NFIP was looking for someone capable in researching a polio vaccine, and there was no candidate better for this research than Dr. Jonas Salk.7P Salk was a very experienced researcher; he played a crucial role in the development of influenza vaccines during World War II, and also had a deep understanding of the immune system and antibodies.8B Additionally, Salk also worked to treat multiple sclerosis, cancer, and HIV.9C Together, in the 8 years that followed after recruitment, Salk and the NFIP would take a stand against polio by successfully trying to put an end to polio through the use of

One of the areas that we have greatly improved in has been our medical studies. With the improvements in our medical studies came vaccines. The first recorded vaccinated happened in 1774 by a farmer named Benjamin Jesty (The Dorest Page). Benjamin was an ordinary farmer, but during the summer there was an outbreak of smallpox (The Dorest Page). Small pox was a dangerous disease that sometimes ended with death. “Benjamin reasoned that if dairymaids who caught cowpox accidentally were immune to smallpox, then someone who caught cowpox deliberately should be equally immune. He therefore resolved to infect his family with cowpox with a

One of the worst polio epidemics to hit the United States was in 1916 in the heart of New York City. It infected 9,000 just in the city and kept spreading throughout the states to infect over 27,000. It left

When the polio virus exploded across the US in 1952, the newly formed health organizations (CDC, WHO, UN Foundation) rallied together alongside private foundations (Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis) and fought back with a new tool: public awareness campaigns that introduced the idea of preventing diseases by following hygienic routines (Oshinsky

Immunizations have lowered the morbidity rate over the course of many years. Before vaccines were introduced, during 1900 through 1904, an average of 48,164 cases and 2528 deaths were caused by both severe and mild forms of smallpox in the United States. After the smallpox vaccine was introduced, the disease ceased to stop and the last case to ever be reported was in 1929. Getting vaccinated against the smallpox actually eradicated the disease, meaning it has been wiped out. Next, in 1951- 1954, on average, 16,316 polio cases and 1879 polio deaths were reported each year. Once the polio vaccine was introduced, less that 1000 cases were reported in 1962. As of 1991, wild-type polio viruses have been eliminated from the Western Hemisphere. But

While others see vaccinations as unnecessary, vaccine- preventable diseases have still not disappeared on Earth. The CDC states that although these diseases are not present around certain areas, it is “only one plane ride away” from that area. In countries like Pakistan, the paralytic form of polio is still present with 93 cases in 2013 and 71 in 2014; however, in other countries the virus has largely disappeared. The polio virus itself can be somewhat incubated by a person without symptoms for years and that person can infect anyone around them unintentionally. Unvaccinated Amish missionaries, who traveled to the Philippines in May 2014, brought back measles to Ohio, resulting in 155 people by June 5, 2014 (Vaccine). Measles, having one of the highest record of outbreaks, had 16 outbreaks in the United States resulting in at least 334 cases in 18 states. Vaccine preventable diseases,

Some of the greatest accomplishments to come out of the twenty-first century are vaccines. They were designed to stop major epidemics from wiping out the populations. As so many have in history. Nevertheless, numerous parents are now opting out of getting their children vaccinated under personal beliefs and religious. This is causing older illnesses to become more prominent in current times. When considering vaccines think about the history of vaccines, the potential risk of not getting vaccinated, and the effectiveness.

Two observations led to the development of vaccines: Smallpox survivors became immune to the disease and controlled exposure lead to milder outbreaks. Variolation was the first method used to immunize someone against smallpox. Around 1,000 A.D., Chinese doctors began grinding smallpox scabs into a powder substance that they then pur into the noses of each patient. Also around 1,000 A.D. in India, doctors would dip needles into blisters of smallpox patients

The first Polio epidemic took place in the 1900’s. It began showing up in Europe and the United States. During the first half of the 20th century the disease quickly spread through Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. By 1952 the polio outbreak

Jonas salk invented the IPV vaccine. He was born October 28, 1914 to Russian parents. His parents had no education but wanted him to be successful so they encouraged him to work hard. “In 1939 he received a Medical Degree from New York University College of Medicine. In 1942 he joined one of his professors at the University of Michigan School of Public Health” (Petersen, Jennifer B). Jonas and his professor developed vaccine for influenza, which was Salk’s first invention. Then he traveled to Pittsburgh and became a Professor. There, he also became head of the virus research lab. He worked on a vaccine there. He used the killed virus to prevent people from contracting it. On July 2, 1952 he vaccinated 42 children who did not have polio and his trials succeeded. On April 12, 1955 Salk vaccinate 1.8 million children and right after he announced that his trial were effective and that the vaccine works (Petersen, Jennifer B).

The discovery of the polio vaccine was an important medical and scientific breakthrough because it saved many lives since the 1950s. In the summer of 1916 the great polio epidemic struck the United states. By the 1950s hundreds of thousands of people had been struck by the poliomyelitis. The highest number of cases occurred in 1953 with over 50,000 people infected with the virus.

Polio is virus infection that occurs in the throat and intestines through environmental contaminations such as water by stool and feces [7]. The virus in most cases occurs in children aged five and under and leads to the invasion of the nervous system which can cause irreversible paralysis [12]. In 1988 a proposal called Global Polio Eradication Initiative was put forward by the World Health Assembly to eradicate the disease which included partners such as “WHO, Rotary International, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), UNICEF, and supported by key partners including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation” [12]. Since this proposal, cases of polio have dropped from 350,000 yearly to a global low of 223 cases in 2012 [1, 7]. Since 2012 “only parts of three countries in the world remain endemic for the disease–the smallest geographic area in history” [12]. However, with only one percent of the world infected with polio, it reappeared in countries and cases increased by seventy percent [1]. Canadians should not take the matter lightly because the course of the disease can change quickly. In an interview