| All neurons outside the central nervous system | | | | In the urbanized world, Polio is practically unknown now |
| conduct impulses along tiny hairlike extensions we call | | | | because of vaccination, though it rarely does still occur |
| the nerve fibers or axons. The axons connecting your | | | | in the developing world in parts of India and Africa. |
| spinal cord to your foot can be more than thirty six | | | | Anyone travelling to those areas should make certain |
| inches long, but only a few micrometers in diameter. | | | | that they are vaccinated. Check with your doctor to |
| Axons grow out of the cell body, which houses the | | | | see if the location you are visiting carries a risk of |
| nucleus as well as other organelles. The length of | | | | contracting Polio. In a few cases, parents or |
| some axons is so great that it is incredible that the cell | | | | grandparents who never received the vaccination |
| body controls them all the way to their tip. There is a | | | | when they were children can catch Polio from a newly |
| steady transport of cell components from the cell | | | | vaccinated baby. People who have had Polio should |
| body along the entire length of the axon. This flow is | | | | also be vaccinated as they will only be immune to one |
| driven by kinesis moving along the many microtubules | | | | of the Polio viruses that they suffered from, and not all |
| in the cytoplasm within the axon. Even so, it may take | | | | of them. |
| 2 weeks or longer for material synthesized in the cell | | | | The most common symptoms of PPS are those that |
| body to reach the axon terminals in your big toe. The | | | | are similar to M.E., including fatigue, muscle aches and |
| nerves that receive sensory stimuli such as how | | | | weakness, and lack of stamina. Depending on the |
| something feels or if it is painful are called sensory | | | | scope of the original illness there could be other |
| nerves. They are made up of nerve fibers, called | | | | symptoms, including amplified sensitivity to cold in limbs |
| sensory fibers. There are two types of these fibers. | | | | when circulation is affected, breathing problems mostly |
| One type senses body movement and pressure or | | | | at night and associated with a severe headache on |
| outside influence against any part of the body and the | | | | waking that alleviates later, and swallowing and speech |
| other type senses tissue injury. Sensory neurons are | | | | difficulties, or both. |
| neurons that are set in motion by sensory input (vision, | | | | Many of the symptoms of PPS can be blocked from |
| touch, hearing, etc.), and send information into the | | | | making headway, if not reversed, by appropriate |
| central nervous system that communicate sensory | | | | management, mostly by pacing or energy |
| information to the brain or spinal cord. | | | | management. High levels of activity can be a cause of |
| A stun gun works on this second type of nerve fiber | | | | faster tiring of inadequate neurological resources, but |
| by creating an outside influence on the body when | | | | under activity results in stiffened muscles having a |
| touched by it. It outputs a high-voltage charge through | | | | need for more effort to get going again. One needs to |
| a device to the attacker through two probes. There is | | | | have the right balance. This means doing what you |
| a positive probe and a negative probe and the | | | | want or need to do but adding in rest periods just |
| attacker acts to complete the circuit so the charge will | | | | before you reach that limit. It is also important to |
| flow. The electrical charge flows through the stun gun | | | | healthy eating and not getting too overweight or |
| into the attacker's body and through the nervous | | | | quitting smoking. Your doctor needs to know if you |
| system. In the simplest form, it short circuits the | | | | have had Polio because some drugs may have |
| sensory fibers carrying the signals to the muscles | | | | greater effects on people who have been affected |
| through the central nervous system from the brain. | | | | and will need to be prescribed with greater |
| The muscles are not getting correct signals from the | | | | watchfulness and carefully monitored, these include |
| brain and do not know what to do. | | | | beta-blockers, sedatives and anesthetics. |
| Polio has some similarities to a stun gun because the | | | | The motor neurons rooted in the anterior horn travel |
| polio virus affects the body by attacking the central | | | | outward through the peripheral nerves to innervate |
| nervous system; particularly the anterior horn cells. | | | | muscle fibers. Depending on the location of the |
| These motor neurons are located in the front part of | | | | muscles they supply, these motor neurons can be a |
| the spinal cord and are essential for any muscle | | | | few inches or several feet long. Along with sending a |
| activity. Peripheral neuropathy occurs when the | | | | high level electrical charge through the body through |
| peripheral nerves are damaged or destroyed. This | | | | the central nervous system to the brain, a stun gun |
| may be caused by disease, inherited disorders, injury, | | | | causes rapid, repeated involuntary muscle contractions. |
| and others. Polio and diphtheria can also cause | | | | This effectively immobilizes the attacker. The effect |
| peripheral neuropathy. Although, stun guns will not | | | | can last up to several minutes, which should be long |
| cause muscle damage, they only confuse the signal | | | | enough for the potential victim to escape the scene. |
| from the brain as long as the stun gun remains on the | | | | Post-Polio Syndrome (PPS) and M.E. look a lot like one |
| victim. The symptoms of peripheral neuropathy | | | | another in many ways, but this does not mean that |
| depend upon the cause and the location of the nerve | | | | they are the same. Comparable characteristics include |
| damage. If sensory nerves are damaged, symptoms | | | | fatigue, lack of endurance and aches, pains and |
| can include numbness and pain, usually in the hands, | | | | weakness in muscles. Due to this similarity some PPS |
| arms, legs, or feet; "pins and needles" sensations; and | | | | sufferers are wrongly diagnosed as afflicted from M.E. |
| tingling or burning. Damage to motor nerves causes | | | | because it is a more familiar ailment to doctors). The |
| general muscle weakness. Sensory nerves are not | | | | management of these symptoms is also similar being |
| directly affected by the polio virus, but over time, they | | | | mainly based around energy management. Simply |
| too will make muscles to shrink due to non-use. | | | | maintaining a balance between over and under activity. |
| Symptoms can progress to complete paralysis. | | | | The two diverge in their cause - Post-Polio Syndrome |
| Polio does not cause muscle damage, but the | | | | can only occur in a person with a history of Polio, and |
| symptoms of Polio are caused by a virus attacking | | | | is not an immediate consequence but arises thirty or |
| motor neurons in the spinal cord. Sensory neurons are | | | | more years later. It can both affect those who show |
| unaffected by both polio and a stun gun, and as such, | | | | to have made a full recovery in addition to those left |
| the ability to feel pain, heat, cold, or touch is not | | | | with a permanent disability. Even though there is not full |
| affected. These motor neurons, as with all neurological | | | | agreement on the cause of PPS the most common |
| tissue, cannot be re-grown once dead. So in | | | | theory is that worn-out motor neurons experience |
| recovering from polio, the neighboring motor neurons | | | | early ageing. Understanding the logic behind this, it is |
| must develop additional branches to furnish the | | | | useful for one to have some understanding of Polio. |
| muscles that are now without. These muscles can | | | | In intricate organisms, sensory neurons transmit their |
| simply be overworked. This leads to a second disability | | | | information to the central nervous system or in less |
| many years later known as PPS, or Post Polio | | | | complex organisms, such as the hydra, straight to |
| Syndrome. Analogous to these motor neurons now | | | | motor neurons and sensory neurons also transmit |
| handling twice or more their normal load, unaffected | | | | information, electrical impulses, to the brain, where it |
| limbs may have had to pay for the damages of those | | | | can be further processed and acted upon. For |
| disabled by the polio virus for example arms and | | | | example, olfactory sensory neurons connect with |
| shoulders may feel the consequences of years of | | | | neurons of the olfactory bulb, where the sense of |
| using crutches to make up for weakened legs. All this | | | | olfaction (smell) is processed. Another example of this |
| has no similarities to the use of a stun gun, except that | | | | would be the charge from a stun gun making contact |
| where polio has a long term effect on these motor | | | | with neurons and transmitting information to the brain in |
| neurons, a stun gun has short term effects. The stun | | | | a scrambled fashion. This would cause the muscles of |
| gun takes only seconds and has a temporary effect, | | | | the body get scrambled information and unable to |
| while polio takes years and has a permanent effect. | | | | process it. |
| Poliomyelitis, sometimes called infantile paralysis, is | | | | At the molecular level, sensory receptors located on |
| actually caused by one of three viruses, which cause | | | | the cell membrane of sensory neurons are in charge |
| a range of symptoms. It ranged from a short-term | | | | of the exchange of stimuli into electrical impulses. The |
| flu-like illness to paralysis from one or more limbs | | | | type of receptor working by a given sensory neuron |
| necessitating rehabilitation, to the whole body including | | | | determines the type of stimulus it will be sensitive to. |
| the muscles of breathing and swallowing which | | | | For example, neurons that control mechanoreceptors |
| sometimes called for the infamous iron lung. Recovery | | | | are sensitive to physical stimuli (stun gun charge), while |
| could be complete and return to normal or partial with | | | | olfactory receptors make a cell sensitive to odors |
| a remaining disability, most times paralysis or limitation | | | | (smell). |
| of one or more limbs. | | | | |