If Elvis can do it, anyone can. This is what doctors figured in 1956 when they approached him to be photographed receiving the polio vaccine. The King of Rock and Roll agreed to being jabbed by a needle, and received his vaccine at CBS Studios in New York before appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show. […]
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Historic Global Vaccine Rollout Could End Polio Forever
In an article written by Walter Orenstein, the former director of the United States’ National Immunization Program, discusses what could possibly be the finally push to eradicate polio forever. From April 17 through May 1, healthcare workers and government officials are working with 155 countries to make the switch from the trivalent OPV to the […]
Read MoreThe Entire World Is Getting a New Polio Vaccine Next Month
Beginning in late April, 155 countries will switch to a new version of the polio vaccine. The switch, which will take place over the course of two weeks, will go from the trivalent (tOPV) version of the vaccine to the bivalent (bOPV) version, which protects against the two remaining wild polio strains. The maneuver will […]
Read MoreNigeria: $274 Million Needed for Polio Campaign
In order to continue the current polio campaign in Nigeria, which was delisted as a country with known polio cases, officials say that $274 million will be needed from foreign donors to continue the campaign through 2016. The executive director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) noted the sum earlier this week […]
Read MoreWe Might Be Rid of Polio Very Soon
According to reports, only nine new cases of polio have been reported around the world so far this year. This is a dramatic decrease compared to 2015, which saw 74 reported cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Officials believe that polio is on track to be completely eradicated soon thanks to a worldwide […]
Read MoreTour Historic ‘Polio Treatment’ Facility April 23
Farmington Hills, a suburb of Detroit, was once home to Sister Kenny Hospital, a treatment center for polio patients. Now the Botsford Senior Living Center, the hospital played a key role in the battle against polio and it’s opening its doors for an exclusive tour of the historic facility on April 23. The tour will […]
Read MoreBefore Vaccine Development, Polio Patients Were Encased in Iron Lungs
Several polio survivors and members of the medical community have come forward with their own personal stories surrounding the crippling illness. In 1944, Fargo, North Dakota, resident Dale Stenerson was diagnosed with polio at the age of nine and spent a good portion of the next two years inside an iron lung, a common treatment […]
Read MorePakistan and Afghanistan Join Forces to Wipe Out Polio
In a move to counter the Taliban’s anti-vaccination campaign, Islamic scholars have begun accompanying health care workers to help them gain access to children living in Pakistan and Afghanistan who have not yet received the polio vaccine. The two bordering nations are the remaining countries where polio is endemic. Shahram Tarakai, the health minister for […]
Read MoreInjectable Polio Vaccine Launched
Earlier this week, the injectable polio vaccine (IPV) was introduced in Mysuru, a city in India’s Karnataka state. From this point forward, the IPV will be included in a child’s routine immunization plan. V. Srinivas Prasad, the Mysuru minister, says that he instated the IPV as part of World Health Day, a global health awareness […]
Read MoreRole of Media Termed Crucial in Fighting Polio
During a media roundtable held earlier this week in Quetta, a provincial capital in Pakistan, a coordinator with the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) emphasized the import role that the media plays in the battle for polio eradication. Dr. Saifur Rehman talked to senior reporters about their role in creating a positive national narrative about defeating […]
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