Post-polio syndrome

Post-polio syndrome, or PPS, is a clinical disorder that sometimes affects poliomyelitis survivors with secondary musculoskeletal conditions years after the initial polio attack, usually at least 15 years after the initial infection.

PPS suffers experience a loss of muscular strength or endurance on healthy muscles as well as muscles that were initially affected by the poliovirus. While the survivors may have experienced temporary paralysis followed by partial or complete recovery, individuals diagnosed with PPS experience sudden and progressive loss of muscular strength in previously unaffected muscles.

The specific causes behind PPS have not been widely explored, but some research studies have validated the inflammatory process in cerebrospinal fluid and the cytokines of the immune system as possible pathophysiological mechanisms. Diagnosing PPS can be difficult, as it includes many non-specific symptoms like fatigue, muscle pain, and cold intolerance.

Therapeutic treatments for PPS patients lack clinical standards, as current drug therapeutics have shown only slight pain-relief benefits and muscular improvement.