A Guide to Childhood Vaccines

Polio virus is a contagious viral illness, which mainly affects young children. It can cause paralysis, permanent disability and even death. Polio is caused by a virus that lives in an infected person’s throat and intestines. The virus can live in an infected person’s feces for many weeks, creating the possibility of it contaminating food and water in unsanitary conditions. While there is no cure for polio, there are effective vaccines. In fact, according to the Mayo Clinic, the last case of polio in the US was reported in 1979. Today, despite global eradication campaigns, polio continues to affect some countries in the Middle East and Africa. The only reported side effect of the inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) vaccine is soreness or redness of the injection site.