Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-06-15
All InocuIated
For PoIioCIear
Critical Period
No Fuirfox Case
Reported Among
Pupils Treated
By Mary Lou Werner

Dy mary LOU werner
DR.. Harold Kennedy. Fairfax
County health officer. can
breathe more easily now.
The incubation of 1880 cour1.
ty second graders who partici.
pated in the Nationwide Salk
polio vaccine tests. has been
completed without one case OF
the dread disease occurring
among those who received the
shots.
1--WE really held our BREATH"
said DR.. Kennedy. Just one
case of polio among the children
who are receiving the shots, and
the whole test might have
failed"
The health officer, who is q
diplomatic Of the American
Board of Preventive Medicine,
wasn't worried that the serum
would cause any cases of polio.
But he feared no amount Of
scientific assurance could have
persuaded the parents that was
the case, if one of the participate
ing children had become i'll.
First Test of Kind.
Fairfax was the first area In
the country to start mass tests
of the commercially produced
vaccine, in cooperation with the
National Foundation for Infan-
tile Paralysis.
Tests conducted on school chill
dren in the Pittsburgh area q
year ago were of privately pre-.
pared vaccine produced by the
inventor, DR.. Jonas Salk. F''
DR.. Kennedy was aware the
polio season was approaching
when the tests began. Other
nearby communities decided that
for that reason. they should not
participate. But DR.. Kennedy
and members of the Fairfax
County Medical Society agreed
to go ahead and risk the criti-
cism of parents if any cases Of
polio occurred among children
receiving the injections.
Few Drop Out.
Their choice apparently was .
wise one. The inoculations be-
gan on April Is and were com.
pleted last week. The number
of children participating at the
start was 2.349. and 1890 were
still in when the final shots were
given. DR.. Kennedy said most
Of those who dropped out were
children who moved from the
county or who were absent for
unavoidable reasons.
Now all those. who were inocu-
lated should be immune to the
Gripping effects of polio, accord
ing to results of the preliminary
tests in Pittsburgh, said DR.. Ken
nedy.
The only polio case reported
in the county during the tests
was that of a 6-year-old boy.
who did not receive the shots.
He was a f1rst-grade student
taking part in the test only as
one of the control" group. First
and second graders were used as
controls, which means their
names were taken to compare
the incidence, of polio among
them with that among the Sec
ond graders who received the
shots.
Blood Sampling Next.
The only task remaining for
the children is the final blood
Sampling. Doctors from the po-
lilo clinic at Johns Hopkins Uni
verSity and technicians from
Alexandria and Arlington hos
pitfalls and the Falls Church
Medical Center tomorrow will
take the final blood specimens
from 270 students in the first.
second and third grades-the
same students who gave similar
samples before the NEGOTIATIONS
began. These samples will be
examined to show how the vac
cine builds up antibodies in the
blood streams. AntibodieS are
the factors that provide immu-
nifty to a disease.
! Although the children's part
is just about over, DR.. Kennedy
and his staff have a lot of work
remaining ahead of them.
But the rest should be q
pleasure-now that we appar-
emily have a clear field to bring
the test to a successful conclu.
sion," said DR.. Kennedy. RI
Many Records to Keep.
Numerous records must be
maintained. Any case of polio
that occurs in the county must
be reported to the State Health
Department promptly and then
to the University of Michigan.
which is serving as statistical
center for the Nationwide
test. Blood tests must be taken
in the family of any child in
the test age group who contracts
polio. Two muscle tests must be
given each time a case is re.
ported.
But to the energetic, deter.
mined health officer who came to
Fairfax County only % months
ago and put across the county's
biggest scientific program, it has
been well worth all the trouble
and hard work, If even one child
is saved from becoming a cripple.
/ nB