Polio Found in New York City’s Wastewater; Are You Vaccinated Against It?

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The disease causes paralysis and especially affected children when it was at its most damaging, mainly from 1948-1955 according to mayoclinic.org.

Fortunately, Dr. Jonas Salk and his colleagues developed the vaccine against polio and it put the disease in check, saving countless lives from pain and even death.

Well, it appears the contagious disease is back. Polio has been detected in New York City's wastewater, according to the Washington Post. Six positive samples were detected in June and July.

What are the symptoms of polio? According to the CDC, symptoms include:

• Sore throat
• Fever
• Tiredness
• Nausea
• Headache
• Stomach pain

These symptoms may go away after 2-5 days but polio can develop into paralysis and meningitis. Or you may be asymptomatic and spread it to someone who the disease can horribly affect.

Sound familiar? That has also been the case with COVID-19?

So, are you vaccinated against polio? Fortunately, an incredibly high percentage of Louisiana children are. According to figures published by Louisiana Radio Network, "the polio vaccination rate for children entering kindergarten in Louisiana last fall was 98.6%, that’s higher than the national average of 93.9%."

It’s a routine vaccination for children but if you’re an adult and you haven’t been vaccinated, reach out to your healthcare provider to get vaccinated,” said LSU Health New Orleans infectious disease specialist Dr. Fred Lopez to LRN. (The) report from New York showing someone who developed polio infection, and who is the person most likely to polio, is the person who’s not been vaccinated.”

It's a great idea to check your immunization status to make sure you are vaccinated against polio, especially as the possibility of the neurological diseases spreading in some communities is out there.