The efforts initially led by Franklin Delano Roosevelt would lead to an almost immediate reversal of the polio crisis – from tens of thousands of new cases with children dying in the thousands, to less than a hundred cases and single-digit deaths within ten years. Unfortunately, FDR died in 1945 before he was able to see his efforts come to fruition, but the near eradication of the polio virus by Jonas Salk is considered one of the major achievements of the 20th century.
Dr. Salk tried to top himself with a vaccine against HIV, but as with a lot of things that surrounded the HIV and AIDS crisis in the 80’s and 90’s, it never quite got the same kind of attention or funding. And although he did develop a treatment, he would die in 1995 before finding the equivalent of what he had done for polio.
At least F.D.R. actually DID something constructive with the March of Dimes, unlike the current occupant who is trying to claim that HE is the reason that there were no fatal Domestic Commercial Aircraft crashes in America in 2017… Of course, the U.S. has gone years without a U.S. commercial airline fatality. There has not been an accidental death on a domestic commercial airline since February 2009, when a Colgan Air flight crashed into a house near Buffalo, N.Y., killing 49 people on board and one person on the ground.
Given the rise in antibiotic resistance, vaccine development is of primary importance for control of disese in the modern world. Restore funding to NIH and increase support for NIAID!
If we use F.D.R. and his “polio” and his subsequent championing of the “March of Dimes” to find a cure as a template, then Donald John Trump should, at least, engender a crusade for “Mental Health”, or, at the very least, an attempt to find a cure for Stupidity!
Salk was way to late to save my dad. who even though he was an adult died of infantile paralyses. The vaccine may have helped me kick my “asthma” which the doc thought might be a very mild case of polio.
I really admire this history lesson about polio. I remember having to have the shots as a child and I hate needles. I had my booster with the sugar cube and thought it was a great Improvement on the vaccine because there are so many people like me who are needle phobes who avoid anything that has to be injected. Every child in my school was involved in the March of Dimes campaigns.
I had to go look up the Guillain Barre syndrome. I had heard of it but had never looked up the symptoms or the treatment for that syndrome. It does sound similar to what infantile paralysis would have done to Roosevelt’s body while he was in office.
There was a Sister Kenny in Australia who had worked out a really effective Rehabilitation treatment for those poor souls who were inflicted by that polio virus. She treated the symptoms rather than the disease and it worked in rehabilitating many Australian victims and even some here in the United States. I went to school with two youngsters who had been through the disease and the Kenny rehabilitation program. As far as I know, the Kenny rehabilitation program was not adopted in this country and I have never known anyone else who went through that Rehabilitation program. Thanks to the Salk vaccine there were fewer victims that were crippled by the infantile paralysis virus, and the rehabilitation program fell out of use even in Australia.
Brian Carroll creator over 6 years ago
Happy 80th anniversary to the March of Dimes!
The efforts initially led by Franklin Delano Roosevelt would lead to an almost immediate reversal of the polio crisis – from tens of thousands of new cases with children dying in the thousands, to less than a hundred cases and single-digit deaths within ten years. Unfortunately, FDR died in 1945 before he was able to see his efforts come to fruition, but the near eradication of the polio virus by Jonas Salk is considered one of the major achievements of the 20th century.
Dr. Salk tried to top himself with a vaccine against HIV, but as with a lot of things that surrounded the HIV and AIDS crisis in the 80’s and 90’s, it never quite got the same kind of attention or funding. And although he did develop a treatment, he would die in 1995 before finding the equivalent of what he had done for polio.
Masterskrain Premium Member over 6 years ago
At least F.D.R. actually DID something constructive with the March of Dimes, unlike the current occupant who is trying to claim that HE is the reason that there were no fatal Domestic Commercial Aircraft crashes in America in 2017… Of course, the U.S. has gone years without a U.S. commercial airline fatality. There has not been an accidental death on a domestic commercial airline since February 2009, when a Colgan Air flight crashed into a house near Buffalo, N.Y., killing 49 people on board and one person on the ground.
Zev over 6 years ago
How about the thousands of lives saved due to the ACA?
VegaAlopex over 6 years ago
Had FDR known about the dangers of tobacco, he would have given HST (only two years younger) a run for longevity.
martens over 6 years ago
Given the rise in antibiotic resistance, vaccine development is of primary importance for control of disese in the modern world. Restore funding to NIH and increase support for NIAID!
braindead Premium Member over 6 years ago
Well, you know, Trump has been very strict with the health care industry, and that’s the REAL reason we had no polio last year.
wellis1947 Premium Member over 6 years ago
If we use F.D.R. and his “polio” and his subsequent championing of the “March of Dimes” to find a cure as a template, then Donald John Trump should, at least, engender a crusade for “Mental Health”, or, at the very least, an attempt to find a cure for Stupidity!
allen winchester over 6 years ago
Salk was way to late to save my dad. who even though he was an adult died of infantile paralyses. The vaccine may have helped me kick my “asthma” which the doc thought might be a very mild case of polio.
Sadandconfused9 over 6 years ago
I really admire this history lesson about polio. I remember having to have the shots as a child and I hate needles. I had my booster with the sugar cube and thought it was a great Improvement on the vaccine because there are so many people like me who are needle phobes who avoid anything that has to be injected. Every child in my school was involved in the March of Dimes campaigns.
I had to go look up the Guillain Barre syndrome. I had heard of it but had never looked up the symptoms or the treatment for that syndrome. It does sound similar to what infantile paralysis would have done to Roosevelt’s body while he was in office.
There was a Sister Kenny in Australia who had worked out a really effective Rehabilitation treatment for those poor souls who were inflicted by that polio virus. She treated the symptoms rather than the disease and it worked in rehabilitating many Australian victims and even some here in the United States. I went to school with two youngsters who had been through the disease and the Kenny rehabilitation program. As far as I know, the Kenny rehabilitation program was not adopted in this country and I have never known anyone else who went through that Rehabilitation program. Thanks to the Salk vaccine there were fewer victims that were crippled by the infantile paralysis virus, and the rehabilitation program fell out of use even in Australia.
danketaz Premium Member over 6 years ago
At first glance, I thought this one might be about Donald Trump’s new coin. (It must be his, he’s got his name on it three times.)
Mr. Blawt over 6 years ago
Today the president keeps all the dimes that come to the White House for himself.