Poliomyelitis

Poliomyelitis, or infantile paralysis, viral disease causing muscle paralysis as a result of direct damage to motor nerve cells in the spinal cord. Current polio vaccine (Sabin vaccine) is a live strain taken by mouth that induces immunity. Poliomyelitis vaccination, originally developed by Jonas Salk (using a killed-virus vaccine), has been one of the 20th century's chief successes in preventive medicine.

See also: Sabin, Albert Bruce; Salk, Jonas Edward.