La poliomielitis (del griego πολιός, poliós: gris; y de µυελός, myelós: refiriéndose a la médula espinal) es una enfermedad infecciosa, también llamada de forma abreviada polio, que afecta principalmente al sistema nervioso. La enfermedad la produce el virus poliovirus. Se llama infantil porque las personas que contraen la enfermedad son principalmente niños. Se transmite de persona a persona a través de secreciones respiratorias o por la ruta fecal oral. La mayoría de las infecciones de polio son asintomáticas. Solo en el 1% de casos, el virus entra al sistema nervioso central (SNC) vía la corriente sanguínea. Dentro del SNC, el poliovirus preferentemente infecta y destruye las neuronas motoras. Esa destrucción de neuronas causa debilidad muscular y parálisis aguda flácida. La poliomielitis es más probable que ocurra en niños de 4 a 15 años en climas templados, en verano cálido e invierno un poco frío. Es una enfermedad muy infecciosa, pero se combate con la vacunación. La enfermedad afecta al sistema nervioso central. En su forma aguda causa inflamación en las neuronas motoras de la médula espinal y del cerebro y lleva a la parálisis, atrofia muscular y muy a menudo deformidad. En el peor de los casos puede causar parálisis permanente o la muerte al paralizarse el diafragma. El 24 de octubre se celebra el Día Mundial contra la Poliomielitis.

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Poliomyelitis, often called polio or infantile paralysis, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. In about 0.5% of cases there is muscle weakness resulting in an inability to move. This can occur over a few hours to few days. The weakness most often involves the legs but may less commonly involve the muscles of the head, neck and diaphragm. Many but not all people fully recover. In those with muscle weakness about 2% to 5% of children and 15% to 30% of adults die. Another 25% of people have minor symptoms such as fever and a sore throat and up to 5% have headache, neck stiffness and pains in the arms and legs. These people are usually back to normal within one or two weeks. In up to 70% of infections there are no symptoms. Years after recovery post-polio syndrome may occur, with a slow development of muscle weakness similar to that which the person had during the initial infection. Poliovirus is usually spread from person to person through infected fecal matter entering the mouth. It may also be spread by food or water containing human feces and less commonly from infected saliva. Those who are infected may spread the disease for up to six weeks even if no symptoms are present. The disease may be diagnosed by finding the virus in the feces or detecting antibodies against it in the blood. The disease only occurs naturally in humans. The disease is preventable with the polio vaccine; however, a number of doses are required for it to be effective. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends polio vaccination boosters for travelers and those who live in countries where the disease is occurring. Once infected there is no specific treatment. In 2015 polio affected less than 100 people, down from 350,000 cases in 1988. In 2014 the disease was only spreading between people in Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan. In 2015 Nigeria had stopped the spread of wild poliovirus but it reoccurred in 2016. Poliomyelitis has existed for thousands of years, with depictions of the disease in ancient art. The disease was first recognized as a distinct condition by Michael Underwood in 1789 and the virus that causes it was first identified in 1908 by Karl Landsteiner. Major outbreaks started to occur in the late 19th century in Europe and the United States. In the 20th century it became one of the most worrying childhood diseases in these areas. The first polio vaccine was developed in the 1950s by Jonas Salk. It is hoped that vaccination efforts and early detection of cases will result in global eradication of the disease by 2018.

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