
Polio
Frederick C. Robbins(Author)
University of Rochester Press
Published on 4. September 1997
Book
Hardback
208 pages
978-1-878822-90-1 (ISBN)
Description
The story of polio in the words of its victims, doctors, and research scientists concerned with the means of eradicating it.
Polio - infantile paralysis -was until recently a greatly feared disease, but is now preventable by a vaccine, which has largely eradicated it from the Western Hemisphere; a global eradication campaign is underway. This book tellsthe storyof polio in fascinating and personal detail, through a series of essays written by those who experienced the disease: its victims, those who cared for them, and those who worked to eliminate it altogether.
Theopening chapter recounts the history of polio from its earliest depiction in Egyptian art to the present day; it is followed by accounts of the experiences of patients who were paralysed in youth by polio, but went on to build successful lives. The challenges of caring for polio sufferers are described by two physicians who worked on polio wards at the height of the epidemic. The story of the cultivation of poliovirus and the testing of the vaccines is related by two research scientists from the laboratories where the breakthroughs were achieved. The final essays describe the public health vaccination campaigns which successfully eradicated polio from the Americas, as experiencedby those who directed them.
Dr. Thomas M. Daniel is Professor Emeritus of Medicine and International Health and Director of the Center for International Health at Case Western Reserve University.
Dr. Frederick C. Robbins is University Professor and Dean Emeritus of the School of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University.
Contributors: Thomas M. Daniel, Frederick C. Robbins, Michael W. R. David, Ann L. McLaughlin, Ruth E. Frischer, Robert M. Eiben, Martha Lipson Lepow, Joao Batista Risi Jr, Ciro De Quadros
Polio - infantile paralysis -was until recently a greatly feared disease, but is now preventable by a vaccine, which has largely eradicated it from the Western Hemisphere; a global eradication campaign is underway. This book tellsthe storyof polio in fascinating and personal detail, through a series of essays written by those who experienced the disease: its victims, those who cared for them, and those who worked to eliminate it altogether.
Theopening chapter recounts the history of polio from its earliest depiction in Egyptian art to the present day; it is followed by accounts of the experiences of patients who were paralysed in youth by polio, but went on to build successful lives. The challenges of caring for polio sufferers are described by two physicians who worked on polio wards at the height of the epidemic. The story of the cultivation of poliovirus and the testing of the vaccines is related by two research scientists from the laboratories where the breakthroughs were achieved. The final essays describe the public health vaccination campaigns which successfully eradicated polio from the Americas, as experiencedby those who directed them.
Dr. Thomas M. Daniel is Professor Emeritus of Medicine and International Health and Director of the Center for International Health at Case Western Reserve University.
Dr. Frederick C. Robbins is University Professor and Dean Emeritus of the School of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University.
Contributors: Thomas M. Daniel, Frederick C. Robbins, Michael W. R. David, Ann L. McLaughlin, Ruth E. Frischer, Robert M. Eiben, Martha Lipson Lepow, Joao Batista Risi Jr, Ciro De Quadros
Reviews / Votes
A remarkable collection of essays.... Each of these personal histories is a valuable piece of history [but] the value of these stories extends beyond the historical record. POLIO should certainly inspire the world to carry on until no child will suffer polio paralysis again. * LANCET *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Rochester
United States
Publishing group
Boydell & Brewer Ltd
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
11 s/w Abbildungen
11 b/w illus.
Dimensions
Height: 549 mm
Width: 351 mm
Weight
1 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-878822-90-1 (9781878822901)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Book
04/1999
University of Rochester Press
€30.90
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Persons
Content
Introduction
1. A History of Poliomyelitis
2. Personal Memoir from the 1944 Kentucky Polio Epidemic
3. One Couple's Journey from Paralysis to Post-Polio
4. Waiting for Society to Catch Up
5. Polio and the Making of a Doctor
6. The Polio Experience and the Twilight of the Contagious Disease Hospital
7. Reminiscences of a Virologist
8. Love in the Virus Lab
9. Poliomyelitis in Brazil
10. On Towards Victory
Epilogue
1. A History of Poliomyelitis
2. Personal Memoir from the 1944 Kentucky Polio Epidemic
3. One Couple's Journey from Paralysis to Post-Polio
4. Waiting for Society to Catch Up
5. Polio and the Making of a Doctor
6. The Polio Experience and the Twilight of the Contagious Disease Hospital
7. Reminiscences of a Virologist
8. Love in the Virus Lab
9. Poliomyelitis in Brazil
10. On Towards Victory
Epilogue