Question

What exactly happens when someone suffers from polio?

Answer 1

Polio is a crippling and potentially fatal infectious disease. There is no cure, but there are safe and effective vaccines. Initial symptoms include fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck and pain in the limbs.

Infection leads to irreversible paralysis, usually in the legs. This is caused by the virus entering the blood stream and invading the central nervous system. As it multiplies, the virus destroys the nerve cells that activate muscles. The affected muscles are no longer functional and the limb becomes floppy and lifeless - a condition known as acute flaccid paralysis (AFP).