Polio News and Research

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Poliomyelitis (polio) is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus that invades the nervous system and can cause severe paralysis. The virus enters the body through the mouth and multiplies in the intestine. Initial symptoms are fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck, and pain in the limbs. One in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis (usually in the legs). Among those paralyzed, 5-10% die when their breathing muscles become immobilized. Polio mainly affects children under five years of age. Naturally occurring polio was eliminated in the U.S. in 1979 and in the Western Hemisphere by 1991; however, worldwide efforts are continuing towards eradication of this contagious and devastating disease.

Enzyme acts as a sensor to find the hiding spots of viruses

While some types of RNA viruses cloak themselves to hide inside a cell and create copies of themselves, a "detective enzyme" might be attuned to their whereabouts. A slight variation in their genomic code gives some people's cells the capacity to produce this sensor.

14 Aug 2021

Comparative scoring system suggests possibility of global COVID-19 eradication

The global eradication of COVID-19 is probably feasible, and more so than it is for polio, although considerably less so than it was for smallpox, suggests a comparative score of technical, sociopolitical, and economic factors for all three infections, published in the online journal BMJ Global Health.

10 Aug 2021

A quarter of US hospitals, and counting, demand workers get vaccinated. But not here.

Hospitals coast to coast are demanding their employees get vaccinated against covid as the highly contagious delta variant tears through populations with low vaccination rates.

10 Aug 2021

‘Wisdom and fear’ lead 90% of U.S. seniors to covid vaccines

Amid the latest surge in covid-19 cases and hospitalizations, the United States on Tuesday hit a milestone that some thought was unattainable: 90% of people 65 and older are at least partly vaccinated against the disease.

4 Aug 2021

Study sheds light on oral vaccine failure in mouse model of chronic gut disorder

A chronic gut disorder that occurs in regions with poor sanitation disrupts intestinal immune responses and impairs oral vaccine effectiveness in a mouse model of the disease, according to research led by UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists.

3 Aug 2021

Existing drug may be effective in treating SARS-CoV-2

Scientists from the University of Chicago have found that the drug masitinib may be effective in treating COVID-19.

2 Aug 2021

Multibillion dollar crusade to eradicate polio appears to have come to an end

The polio juggernaut, which has skidded past eradication deadline after deadline, seems to have finally run out of fuel, suggests an investigation published by The BMJ today.

29 Jul 2021

Big leagues balk at endorsing vaccination

Santa Clara County, where the San Francisco 49ers train and play their NFL home games, has one of the highest covid vaccination rates in California.

22 Jul 2021

Existing drug may be effective in treating COVID-19

A new University of Chicago study has found that the drug masitinib may be effective in treating COVID-19.

21 Jul 2021

Study suggests COVID-19 vaccine confidence and hesitancy in the UK driven by trust, not misinformation

An interesting new study reports that vaccine hesitancy in the UK is driven not, as is commonly thought, by the so-called ‘infodemic’ of misinformation that has characterized much public messaging during the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the personality of the individual, the ability to trust scientific and government leadership, political affiliations, and openness relative to the process of vaccine development was found to be key in the development of this attitude.

20 Jul 2021

India's Mission Indradhanush improves vaccination outcomes for children

Researchers at CDDEP recently published 'Improving vaccination coverage and timeliness through periodic intensification of routine immunization: evidence from Mission Indradhanush' where they evaluated the performance of India's Mission Indradhanush (MI) child vaccination campaign -- a periodic intensification of the routine immunization program.

16 Jul 2021

23 million children missed out on basic vaccines in 2020 due to COVID-19, new data shows

23 million children missed out on basic vaccines through routine immunization services in 2020 – 3.7 million more than in 2019 - according to official data published today by WHO and UNICEF.

15 Jul 2021

Clinical observations show acute myocarditis developed after mRNA COVID-19 vaccination

Four patients suffering from acute myocarditis after mRNA COVID-19 vaccination suggests that further investigation is needed.

29 Jun 2021

Philippines stamps out polio outbreak after a 16-month drive

COVID-19 and vaccine hesitancy did not stop the Philippines from stamping out a polio outbreak in a 16-month drive that ended June 2021, a feat commended by WHO and UNICEF.

28 Jun 2021

Could polio vaccines induce cross-reactive antibodies that target SARS-CoV-2?

A new preprint released on the medRxiv* server explores a link between immunity to SARS-CoV-2, the earlier SARS-CoV, and childhood poliovirus vaccination. Almost 90% of the world’s people have received this vaccine, but antibodies elicited by it reduce over time and are almost absent at the end of adolescence.

24 Jun 2021

First spatial scan analysis helps identify hotspots of undervaccinated children

The map of Montana Kayla Irish pulls up is peppered with red circles, each cluster providing details behind one of today's timely topics - childhood vaccination.

23 Jun 2021

What it means when celebrities stay coy about their vaccine status

When two St. Louis Blues hockey players were sidelined because of covid-19 just days before this year's NHL playoffs, the team said young defenseman Jake Walman had been vaccinated against the deadly illness. But it was mum about the vaccination status of a more well-known player: star forward David Perron.

21 Jun 2021