Mary Ann Buckingham had polio when she was 12 and walked using braces and crutches. Now 73, she started using a wheelchair about 20 years ago when her arms became too weak to use crutches.
As a polio support group leader for 10 years, she was well aware of the danger of pressure sores and took preventive measures to avoid them such as rotating her weight every 15 minutes and never scooting out of the chair. And, until recently, she was successful.
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Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) on Aging with a Physical Disability (2012)
Over the last 20 years, the rates of obesity in the United States have skyrocketed. More than one-third of U.S. adults (35.7%) are obese. Being overweight and obese is associated with a number of other preventable conditions, such as type II diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke and several forms of cancer.
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Researchers at the University of Washington’s Aging Rehabilitation Research and Training Center
Chronic pain is something that many people, including many individuals with post-polio syndrome (PPS), face on a day-today basis. In fact, from the preliminary results of our recent survey of post-polio people, we found that 373 out of 419, or 89 percent, reported at least some daily pain.
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Researchers at the University of Washington’s Aging Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (2009)
One of the first things that people notice as they grow older is a change in their sleeping patterns. The older they get, the less they sleep; or they just feel less rested when they wake up.
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Alan Fiala, PhD (deceased), Falls Church, Virginia
Yoga has provided benefits to me in improving breathing, maintaining flexibility, improving balance and reducing stress. I have post-polio syndrome with loss of muscle strength, and I do not seek to gain strength from yoga.
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Nancy Baldwin Carter, BA, M Ed Psych, Omaha, Nebraska, is a polio survivor, a writer, and is founder and former director of Nebraska Polio Survivors Association.
It’s not as if we polio survivors never run into a glitch or two in a day. Let’s face it—dealing with the unexpected has become part of everyone’s routine. Developing the finesse to do that smoothly and successfully—well, that may be a different matter.
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Margaret Hinman and Marny Eulberg, MD, explain the Grand Junction, Colorado, Traveling Clinic and Mini Educational Meeting held September 2104.
Planning and Publicity
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"Chapter 7: Polio"
in Werner, David. Disabled Village Children: A Guide for Community Health Workers, Rehabilitation Workers, and Families. Hesperian Foundation. 2009.
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Example 1: A 33-year-old lady (2011) who had polio is pregnant for the first time. She describes her acute illness and recovery and requests advice:
"I had polio when I was 7 months old and was paralyzed throughout my whole body. My parents told me that they fed me using a spoon and a dropper. I could not sit up by myself when I was 4-5 years old, so they put pillows around me. I had surgery on my Achilles heel by physicians from the San Diego Children’s Hospital who came to my home in Tijuana. They also gave me braces on both of my legs.
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There is no official certification for a “polio doctor.” The most common use of this informal designation is a physician with knowledge, experience and interest in evaluation and treatment of polio survivors.
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