Living With Polio

Millions of individuals who had polio are living in all areas of the world. Survivors range in age from a few months to nonagenarians (in their nineties). Aftereffects vary greatly depending on the number and location of the nerve cells destroyed by the poliovirus. The challenge or ease of living with polio varies for each survivor, depending on the availability of medical care and rehabilitation opportunities, and their family and social support.

Advice, hints, explanations, etc., are categorized by topic and are searchable. The source of the material is identified.

Reminder: PHI’s post-polio.org and IVUN’s ventusers.org or ventnews.org features numerous articles to assist in living with polio.

La poliomielitis no tiene un contexto social actual

PROMOVIENDO SOLUCIONES POSITIVAS
Salud Post-Polio, Primavera 2016, Volumen 32, Número 2

PREGUNTA: Como joven sobreviviente de la poliomielitis, creo que lo más difícil es tener una enfermedad / diagnóstico que ya no tiene contexto social actual. Es como estar atrapado en un túnel del tiempo cultural. Tengo una condición que está relativamente curada y erradicada de la mayoría de las partes del mundo.

Question: What to do about a bursa?

In mid-August 2016, I bumped my right elbow on the bar of my wheelchair, and it hurt a lot for a few days. But it wasn’t till late September that I developed a bursa. The nurse practitioner at our doctor’s office drained it, but it filled back up. When I went there the following week she didn’t want to drain it again without sending me to an orthopedist.

How to Exercise If You Are Living with Post Polio Syndrome

By Stephen Pate

If you have Post Polio Syndrome (PPS), it’s vital to exercise moderately every second day to keep the muscles we have and avoid obesity, diabetes, stroke and heart disease.

Exercise also helps us accomplish more of those activities of daily living and can improve how we feel.

Why Exercise?

A Question about Bracing

Question: What type of brace would you recommend for a post-polio patient with poor strength in the thigh muscles? We are in New Hampshire, USA.

Answer: As for your patient, I am going to break down my remarks into two sections, depending on some of the characteristics of your patient. Since your email said your patient had muscle weakness in the thigh, I am assuming you mean quadriceps, and perhaps hamstring weakness, but suspect your patient may also have some weakness of hip muscles and possibly even of some muscles in the lower leg.