Poliomyelitis is a viral infectious disease caused by the poliovirus that affects the nervous, lymphatic and gastrointestinal systems. Most often, children under 4 years of age are exposed to the virus, there are cases of the disease in teenagers. The virus is transmitted by airborne, fecal-oral route: dirty hands, secretions of an infected person, unwashed products, contaminated water. The virus dies under the influence of high temperature and disinfectants. The danger of the disease is the effect on the spinal cord and brain, which can lead to paralysis.
Treatment of a mild clinical form is symptomatic, with the development of complications, hospitalization in an infectious disease hospital and additional consultation of narrow specialists is indicated.
Prevention of poliomyelitis - vaccination of children and adults , as well as compliance with the rules of personal hygiene.
The incubation period is 14 days, after which the following symptoms, depending on the form of the disease, appear:
Poliomyelitis is diagnosed by clinical symptoms with the help of laboratory (virological) studies of the material: mucus from the nasopharynx, feces, cerebrospinal fluid, serologically (detection of antibodies and/or antigen in the blood). Sometimes an analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid is required.