polio
WHAT CAN BE DONE?
DURING THE ORIGINAL ILLNESS, when the child first becomes paralyzed:
• No medicines help, either during the first illness, or later.
• Rest is important. Avoid forceful exercise because this may increase paralysis. Avoid
injections.
• Good food during recovery helps the child become stronger. (But take care that the child
does not eat too much and get fat. An overweight child will have more problems with
walking and other movements.) For suggestions about good food, see Where There Is
No Doctor, Chapter 11.
• Position the child to be
comfortable and to avoid
contractures. At first
the muscles will
be painful, and the
child will not want to
straighten his joints.
Slowly and gently try
to straighten his arms
and legs so that the
child lies in as good a
position as possible.
(See Chapter 8.)
GOOD POSITION
BAD POSITION
Arms, hips, and legs
as straight as possible.
Feet supported.
Bent arms, hips, and
legs. Feet in tiptoe
position.
Note: To reduce pain, you may need to put cushions under the knees,
but try to keep the knees as straight as you can.
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FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL ILLNESS:
• Continue with good food and good positions.
• As soon as the fever drops, start exercises to prevent contractures and return
strength. Range-of-motion exercises are described in Chapter 42. Whenever
possible, make exercises fun. Active games, swimming, and other activities to
keep limbs moving as much as they can are important throughout the child’s
rehabilitation.
• Crutches, leg braces (calipers), and other aids may help
the child to move better and may prevent contractures or
deformities.
• In special cases, surgery may be needed to correct
contractures, or to change the place where strong muscles
attach, so that they help do the work of weak ones. When a
foot is very floppy or bends to one side, surgery to join certain
bones of the foot may help. But because bone surgery stops
the growth of the foot, usually it should not be done before
age 12 or 13.
• Encourage the child to use his body and mind as much as
possible, to play actively with other children, to take care of his daily needs, to help with
work, and to go to school. As much as possible, treat him like any other child.
disabled village children