Polio Case

[denice]

US reports 1st polio case in nearly a decade

The U.S. has it's first polio case reported in almost a decade.

 

[kashmir64]

I've been saying for many, many years...the reason a lot of diseases have been eradicated is only because everyone is vaccinated. This is no longer the case.
I'm waiting for smallpox to re-make an appearance. Hopefully I'm wrong, but I don't think so.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

Its interesting that they can tell it was vaccine derived and not “wild” as the article called it. And that its not a vaccine we use here since 2000 so from someone who was vaccinated elsewhere.

 

[Bri5]

Its interesting that they can tell it was vaccine derived and not “wild” as the article called it. And that its not a vaccine we use here since 2000 so from someone who was vaccinated elsewhere.

I don't recall the science of how they differentiate, but I do know I read Africa was declared free of wild polio years ago, but that in the past 5 or so, there has been an uptick in vaccine-derived polio in about a dozen African countries.

 

[kashmir64]

I also have a question about how it was transmitted. Other than Johnny Depp, who in the U.S. has been close enough to someone else's feces to contract this disease?

 

[Bri5]

There was a dad in the US years ago who was able to prove he got it from changing his kid's diapers after vaccination. Maybe a daycare worker or hospital janitor or missionary.

 

[denice]

I think given the normal ages when vaccination is given changing diapers would be the most common way of getting it.

 

[Neko-chan's mama]

I also have a question about how it was transmitted. Other than Johnny Depp, who in the U.S. has been close enough to someone else's feces to contract this disease?

I work with babies under 18 months. I come in contact with a lot of poop on a daily basis. A gross fact of life is some people don't wash their hands after using the toilet, transmitting disease.

 

[misty8723]

Both my husband's parents had polio when the epidemic first hit the US. Both were unable to walk, his mother used crutches but his father was in a wheelchair his entire life. I was a child when I vaccine was developed. We all lined up to get our dose and were glad to have it. I sincerely hope polio does not make a comeback, but with people fearing vaccines, I think a lot of diseases will be coming back.

As for contact with feces, you would be surprsed how much fecal matter is found in water. I worked for an environmental consulting company who did water testing so companies could work on being in compliance with the Federal and local laws.

 

[artiemom]

I heard that the person who contracted polio, was NOT vaccinated! Anti-Vaxers!!

 

[denice]

It's only unvaccinated that can get this but of course the antivaxxers will say it is the vaccine's fault. I read that it is only the oral vaccine that can cause this, that is what I had many years ago. The shot doesn't cause it and only shots have been done in the U.S. since 2000 but the oral is still done in many parts of the world.

 

[kashmir64]

I remember getting the oral when I was a kid. They put it on a sugar cube or something. Hard to remember that far back, but I do remember the entire school standing in a line to get it.

 

[KittyFriday]

As for contact with feces, you would be surprsed how much fecal matter is found in water. I worked for an environmental consulting company who did water testing so companies could work on being in compliance with the Federal and local laws.

Oh yeah. My dad was a water/wastewater scientist for various entities, and he worked for the county before he retired. Treatment plants are supposed to rid the water of contaminates, but that's only if they're being operated correctly. And the amount of people who tried to get away with running their sewage onto the ground (or the lake!) was appalling. It's a trend everywhere it seems, but it really was a big problem with people who were buying/building tiny houses, and/or individuals using composting toilets, so my dad has developed a major distaste for those.