POLIO--THE DREAD OF THE 40’S AND 50’S THAT WENT AWAY--CAME BACK AGAIN

Post-polio syndrome (PPS) is a condition that affects survivors of poliomyelitis, a viral infection of the nervous system, after recovery from a much earlier paralytic attack of the virus. Some of the famous people that have been stricken with this dread disease are: Lionel Barrymore, Marion Davies, Mia Farrow, Mel Ferrer, Phylis Kirk, Donald Sutherland, Itzhak Perlman. Typically the symptoms appear 20-40 years after the original infection, at an age of 35 to 60. Symptoms include new or increased muscular weakness, pain in the muscles, and fatigue. The precise mechanism that causes post-polio syndrome is unknown. It shares many features in common with myalgic encephalomyelitis, a form of chronic fatigue syndrome that is apparently caused by viral infections, but unlike those disorders it tends to be progressive, and can cause tangible loss of muscle strength.

There is no laboratory test for post-polio syndrome, nor is there any other specific diagnostic, and diagnosis is usually a "diagnosis of exclusion" whereby other possible causes of the symptoms are eliminated. Objective assessment of muscle strength in PPS patients may not be easy. Changes in muscle strength are determined in specific muscle groups using various muscle scales which quantify strength. Treatment is primarily limited to adequate rest, conservation of available energy, and to supportive measures, such as leg braces and energy-saving devices such as powered wheelchairs, plus pain relievers, sleep aids, etc. Bio-Electric Stimulation Therapy also known as micro current electro therapy (MET), has been proven to relieve pain and fatigue symptoms in early clinical trials. Fatigue is often the most disabling symptom as often even slight exertion can produce disabling fatigue and also increase other symptoms. Some post-polio patients report having memory problems, or various other cognitive difficulties.

A theory holds that the original viral infection damages portions of the lower brain, possibly including the thalamus and hypothalamus. This somehow upsets the hormones that control muscle metabolism, and the result is a metabolic disorder similar to mitochondrial disorder that causes muscle pain and injury (via rhabdomyolysis) and also causes the fatigue. The most widely accepted theory is this one. Motor neuron fibers were originally damaged by the polio virus and were subsequently over-stressed because too few surviving neurons activated too many muscles.