How does polio affect the body?
How polio affects the body depends on the type of polio and what area it attacks. Nonparalytic polio is a type that doesn’t lead to paralysis (abortive poliomyelitis). This usually causes the same mild, flu-like signs and symptoms — sore throat, fever, nausea, vomiting, and constipation or diarrhea — typical of other viral illnesses. Most people recover from abortive polio in less than a week. The downside is that about 5 percent to 10 percent of infected people develop nonparalytic aseptic meningitis, a viral infection of the outer covering (meninges) of the brain. The signs and symptoms, which generally last two to 10 days, include fever, headache, vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue, back pain or stiffness, neck pain or stiffness, pain or stiffness in the arms or legs, muscle spasms or soreness. Paralytic polio is the most serious form of the disease. Paralytic polio often begins with a fever. Five to seven days later, the other signs and symptoms appear and these are headache, neck and bac
