Screening and diagnosis
... Doctors can often recognize polio by symptoms such as neck and back stiffness, abnormal reflexes and difficulty swallowing and breathing. To confirm the diagnosis, a sample of throat secretions, stool...

Signs and symptoms
... Despite polio''s ability to cause paralysis and death, the vast majority of people who contract the virus don''t become sick and are never aware they''ve been infected. Yet even without any sign of il...

Causes
... Some viruses, including those that cause SARS, West Nile, monkeypox and, most recently, avian flu, are transmitted to humans through animal hosts. But the poliovirus resides only in humans and enters ...

Risk factors
... You''re at greatest risk of polio if you haven''t been immunized against the disease. In areas with poor sanitation and sporadic or nonexistent immunization programs, the most vulnerable members of th...

Risk factors
... You''re at greatest risk of polio if you haven''t been immunized against the disease. In areas with poor sanitation and sporadic or nonexistent immunization programs, the most vulnerable members of th...