Polio through history | what caused polio
PolioSections&MediaArticleIntroductionThecourseofthediseaseTreatmentandvaccinationPoliothroughhistoryFromminoroutbreakstoepidemicsTheageofthevaccineAglobalcampaignMediaVideosImagesAdditionalInfoMoreArticlesOnThisTopicContributorsArticleHistoryLoadPreviousPagePoliothroughhistoryFromminoroutbreakstoepidemicsPolioepidemicsdidnotbegintooccuruntilthelatterpartofthe19thcentury,butevidenceindicatesthatpolioisanancientdisease.Awell-knownstelefromthe18thdynastyofancientEgypt(1570–1342bce)clearlydepictsapriestwithatelltaleparalysisandwitheringofhislowerrightlegandfoot.ThemummyofthepharaohSiptahfromthelate19thdynasty(1342–1197bce)showsasimilarlycharacteristicdeformityoftheleftlegandfoot.However,becauseofthesporadicappearanceoftheinfection,theabsenceofepidemicsuntilrelativelyrecenttimes,andthenonspecificnatureandinfrequencyoftheacuteillness,thereishardlyanotherrecognizabletraceofthediseaseuntilthe18thcentury.In1789apediatricianinLondon,MichaelUnderwood,publishedthefirstcleardescriptionofparalyticdiseaseofinfantsinamedicaltextbook.Intheearly19thcentury,smallgroupsofpolio-afflictedpatientsbegantobereportedinthemedicalliterature,butstillonlyassporadiccases.ItisanironyofmedicalhistorythatthetransformationofpoliointoanepidemicdiseaseoccurredonlyinthoseindustrializedcountriesinNorthAmericaandEuropethathadexperiencedsignificantimprovementsinhygieneduringthe19thand20thcenturies.Thathasledhealthexpertstoconjecturethattheinfectionwascommoninearliertimesbutthatpeoplewereexposedandinfected(intypicallyunhygienicenvironments)atveryyoungages,whentheywerelesslikelytosufferpermanentparalysisasanoutcome.Ashygieneimproved,thecertaintyofyoungpeopleofsuccessivegenerationsbeingexposedtotheviruswasgraduallyreduced,andinthatnewsituationitwasnotlongbeforeenoughsusceptiblechildrenandadultshadaccumulatedtoallowepidemicstobreakout.BritannicaQuizDiseases,Disorders,andMore:AMedicalQuizWhatconditioniscausedbythedepositionofsaltsofuricacid?What’sanothernameforbreakbonefever?Findoutwhatyouknowaboutdiseases,dis
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