About Polio Virus Symptoms

Poliomyelitis is a disease that can cause nerve damage, paralysis and even death. Since the introduction of an immunization, polio has become rare in the U.S. Once infected, a person can have the disease in their mouth and throat for up to three weeks. Once it gets into the intestines, it will can live here for up to eight weeks. If the disease gets into the bloodstream, it may cause a host of symptoms, though many infected individuals may experience mild to no symptoms at all.

Nonparalytic Polio

• People infected with this polio virus won't become paralyzed because of it. They may experience flu-like symptoms (such as fever, headaches, vomiting) and it can last for up to ten days.

Paralytic Polio

• Paralytic polio is rare, and symptoms are similar to nonparalytic polio. However, after about one to ten days, symptoms increase, and a person may experience muscle aches and spasms, loss of reflexes and droopy limbs on one side of the body.

Spinal Polio

• This type of polio attacks spinal cord nerves and causes paralysis of the arms and legs. A person may begin to have difficulty in breathing, and may never regain function of their limbs.

Bulbar Polio

• The nerves of the brainstem can be damaged, causing a loss of your senses (i.e. taste, touch, hearing) and can even cause difficulty breathing.

Bulbospinal Polio

• A person will experience paralysis of the limbs, difficulty breathing and loss of heart function.

Post-Polio

• Even after a person has recovered from an initial polio infection, they can still suffer symptoms up to thirty to forty years after. They can have muscle weakness, exhaustion, breathing issues, muscle atrophy and sleep apnea.