Polio Place

Polio redux

Author: Dalakas, M.C., Bartfeld, H., & Kurland, L.T.

Journal/Publisher: The Sciences (New York Academy of Sciences)

Issue: 1995

Abstract
Forty years ago this summer, in July and August of 1955, a great cloud of fear began to lift from the national psyche. For the first summer in recent memory, parents began to decide they could allow their children to cool off in the local swimming hole, without the gnawing dread of dire consequences. Just a year before, fear had been the dominant emotion, and with good reason. In that summer, as in many preceding ones, the season of joyful outdoor play had also been known as the season of polio. [study of the long term effects of polio]