“I’ve Seen Polio”

  In order to understand the concerns parents and grandparents have about the most recent outbreak of a polio-like illness such as acute flaccid myelitis (read yesterday’s PediaBlog post, “Another Mysterious Spike,” about AFM), it helps to gain...

Polio’s Last Stand

Nearly two summers ago, Dr. Sarah Kohl reminded us that we were “This Close” to eradicating the scourge of polio from the face of the earth: Sometimes it is hard for us to realize what a burden polio is since it has been eradicated from the Western...

Eradicating Polio

Microsoft founder Bill Gates made this announcement last week: As of today, India has gone three years without a single case of wild poliovirus, which means it’s now officially “polio-free.” India’s achievement is one of the most impressive accomplishments in global...

Iron Lung, Steel Spirit

  I read this story by JoNel Aleccia last weekend, and it still spooks me: Martha Ann Lillard, now 65, has spent most of the past six decades inside an 800-pound machine that helps her breathe. News this month that at least 13 children have been paralyzed by a...

This Close

Sarah Kohl, M.D. wants us all to know just how close humanity is to eradicating polio:   Sometimes it is hard for us to realize what a burden polio is since it has been eradicated from the Western Hemisphere since 1991. But there are still pockets of polio around...