Smyrna times., 1948-08-19
ADVICE GIVEN
ON POLIO
Certain Precautions to Be OBJ
served in Epidemic Areas
During Usual Season
SYMPTOMS CITED

SYMPTOMS CITED
Naturally, you are wondering
how your child came down with
this disease-where he picked up
the bug, how you could have
avoided it. You may even have
said to yourself: Maybe it's my
fault. If I hadn't let my boy go
to that movie two weeks ago"
or, WAS I wrong to have allowed
Mary to go to that birthday
party?" If you are thinking any
such thing, you may relieve your
mind. 1t is doubtful, indeed, if
anyone could tell you today where
your child actually came in con-
tact with the virus of the disease.
1t is certain that no one could
have told you, in advance, exactly
where the danger lay. Actually,
in nearly every instance, there is
nothing that could have been done
to have prevented your child con-
tracing infantile paralysis. There
are certain precautions to be OBJ
served in epidemic areas during
the usual season of high incidence
of infantile paralysis. You prob
ably did restrict your child's activ-
tiles as soon as you knew there
was infantile paralysis in the area.
One can't go too far along these
lines, of course. To keep a child
indoors or alone in his own back
yard for any long period of time
would be to sacrifice the right of
the child to play and live freely.
To do this might mean your child
would develop stilted, unnatural
kinds of behavior, bad for his de-
velopment as an individual. Re
of children's activities fer
short periods, seeing that they
play only with children they al
ready have been exposed to and do
not mingle with new children or
adults, probably does no psyche
logical harm. Remember, your
child got infantile paralysis by
coming in contact with an agent
too small to be seen, whose lodging
place nobody knows, whose human
carriers cannot yet be identified.
Nothing you could have done
would surely have stopped the
virus from entering his body. BY
the time one of your children has
been diagnosed as having infantiIe
paralysis, the chances are great
that your other children already
have been exposed to the virus. If
they haven't shown signs of devel-
oping the disease within a period
of ten to fourteen days, it is un-
likely they have contracted it in
paralytic form from their sick
brother or sister. They may still
get it from other contacts, how
ever; therefore, every precaution
against mingling with crowds or
making new contacts with people
should be taken. And they should
be watched. If they develop any
signs of a cold such as running
nose, some fever, headache, pains
in the neck or limbs, call your doc
tor, keep the child in bed and
await further instructions from
the physician. The same applies
to adult members of your family,
except that, since 85 per cent of all
polio cases occur in children under
18 years of age, adults are regard
ed as less susceptible. Ordinary
business contacts usually need not
be restricted, except in the case of
teachers or other adults in daily
contact with children. Make an
effort to keep calm yourself, so
that you do not upset your whole
household. You need your best
judgment in the presence of ILL
ness, to help those who need and
depend upon you. Don't fail them
by letting emotions replace reason.
For pamphlets on polio you may
wish to telephone Joseph Donald
Craven at Wilmington 5-6239.