The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition. 2002. poliomyelitis
(poh-lee-oh-meye-uh-LEYE -tis) An acute disease , and an infectious disease , caused by a virus , that brings about inflammation of certain nerve cells in the spinal cord . It can have a wide range of effects, from mild to severe, including paralysis , permanent disability, and death. In the United States, the disease has now largely vanished since the development of a vaccine against it. (See Sabin vaccine and Salk vaccine .) 1 ‡ The history of polio, which went from a major public health problem to a minor one in a short time, is often used as an example of the benefits of medical research. 2 ‡ President Franklin D. Roosevelt suffered from poliomyelitis. During his presidency, he could not walk unaided. 3
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition. Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
