21 Comments

I was one of the very first children vaccinated against polio. Am I still protected, or should I ask for a booster?

Expand full comment
founding

As we say in the Good Place, "holy mother-forking shirtballs!" I am no longer amazed at my fellow humans' willingness to cling to a position, but I remember the terror that swept through this country every Summer until Dr. Salk's miracle. The healthcare "system" should be seeing a wave of anti-vax-related illnesses any month now. Thank you, again, Katelyn, for bringing us the (mostly bad) news so clearly.

Expand full comment

Wonderful presentation Katelyn. It's truly difficult to keep a virus under control. I remember the horror we felt of getting polio with the spectre of an iron lung in ones future..we children in the fifties feared polio more than measles and lined up eagerly to get our sugar cubes. Now it's back. My mother got polio when she was young in the twenties, and decades later was diagnosed with post polio syndrome by no less than the Mayo Clinic. Same era one of the greatest presidents our country ever had, FDR, also contracted it and it left him paralyzed. And we thought it was gone.

Expand full comment

Are you sure about the no history of travel? This was a VDPV. The Washington Post reported he had traveled to Poland and Hungary. I don’t know the current vaccination policies of either country (though I assume they use IPV in their routine vaccination programs) but Ukraine, which has had abysmal vaccine coverage for years, especially in Zakarpatia Oblast which borders Hungary, uses OPV in campaigns and may be using it exclusively in IDPs during the war.

Expand full comment

We need inoculation against misinformation and ignorance ...

Expand full comment

So, my daughter’s friend is adopted from Russia, and she is vaccinated for smallpox and says that is common there. I can’t easily find information regarding the subject, but given Russia’s recent proclivities, I have to say it made me a teeny bit nervous. What do you know about the subject?

Expand full comment

Coming soon from the anti-vax wackos: "polio parties" where you can arrange for your child to get infected so they'll have "natural immunity." Free crutches and leg braces will be provided for the survivors.

Expand full comment

Your data-informed writings are a breath of fresh air in our news heavy world. Confidence in scientists has taken a hit in the last 5-6 yrs and it makes me sad. We have always had to contend with charlatans but it feels more prominent now. Thank you for your efforts & keep it up!

Expand full comment

After reading this article an article titled "Poliovirus Vaccination Induces a Humoral Immune Response That Cross Reacts With SARS-CoV-2"

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8369257/

I went ahead and got an inactivated polio vaccine at a CVS, in early June.

I've had several mid-life non-Covid boosters (in addition to a total of 6 Covid shots) since the fall of 2019: MMR, TDAP, PCV20 and Jynneos, as well as annual flu shots.

I haven't had Covid yet, despite having not been particularly careful since this past February. I think it's partly because of my "vaccine resume"

Expand full comment
founding

Thank you

Expand full comment