Polio: Comprehensive Study Notes on Poliomyelitis: Virology, Pathology, Clinical History, and Vaccines

Vocabulary flashcards covering causative agents, types of polio, symptoms, vaccines, historical outbreaks, and major events based on the CLLS 202 Polio lecture notes.

Poliomyelitis (Polio)

A disabling and life-threatening disease caused by the poliovirus that exclusively infects human hosts.

Wild Poliovirus Type 1

The only wild poliovirus serotype that has not been eradicated and still spreads in parts of the world, being the type most likely to cause paralysis.

Abortive Poliomyelitis

A mild type of polio characterized by flu-like and intestinal symptoms lasting a few days without causing long-lasting issues.

Non-paralytic Poliomyelitis

A type of polio more severe than abortive poliomyelitis that can cause aseptic meningitis (swelling around the brain) and may require hospitalization.

Paralytic Poliomyelitis

A severe form of polio occurring in less than 1% of infections where the virus attacks the brain and spinal cord, paralyzing muscles required to move limbs, breathe, speak, and swallow.

Spinal Polio

A form of paralytic poliomyelitis characterized by the poliovirus affecting the spinal cord.

Bulbar Polio

A form of paralytic poliomyelitis where the poliovirus attacks the brainstem/bulbar area controlling breathing, swallowing, and speaking.

Bulbospinal Polio

A condition in which spinal polio and bulbar polio occur simultaneously in a patient.

Polioencephalitis

A rare type of poliovirus infection that causes brain swelling.

Post-Polio Syndrome

A condition occurring 20 to 40 years (or 10 to 70 years) after initial recovery where polio symptoms return as new muscle pain, fatigue, muscle atrophy, joint pain, breathing difficulties, weakness, or paralysis.

Circulating Vaccine-Derived Poliovirus (cVDPV)

A mutated version of poliovirus originally from the weakened live virus in the oral poliovirus vaccine (most commonly type 2) that spreads to unvaccinated individuals and causes illness.

Salk Vaccine (IPV)

Inactivated poliovirus vaccine given as an injection in the leg or arm containing killed versions of all 3 poliovirus types; used exclusively in the United States since 2000.

Sabin Vaccine (OPV)

An attenuated (live-weakened) poliovirus vaccine administered as drops in the mouth that can contain one, two, or all three poliovirus types.

Cutter Laboratories Incident

An April 1955 incident where a defective inactivation process at Cutter Laboratories released polio vaccines containing live virus, causing 40,000 cases of polio, paralyzing 200 children, and killing 10.

Bernice Eddy

An NIH scientist assigned in 1954 to perform safety tests on Salk polio vaccines, who discovered that Cutter Laboratories' vaccine contained residual live poliovirus that paralyzed test monkeys.

National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (NFIP)

An organization founded by Franklin D. Roosevelt to study polio and assist afflicted individuals, later known as the March of Dimes.

Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI)

A global health partnership whose efforts have reduced worldwide polio cases by 99.9% since 1988.