ACT Reading Practice Test 26

SOCIAL SCIENCE: A Cure for Polio

In the early twentieth century, no other disease caused as much fear and anxiety in the United States as paralytic poliomyelitis. Paralytic poliomyelitis, more commonly known as polio, was a particularly

Line 5 devastating disease because of its effect on children. Many children stricken with polio became permanently confined to wheelchairs or died at a very early age. It was during the summer of 1916 that Americans first realized that polio was a threatening and

10 deadly disease. As a virus, polio seemed to spread most quickly and easily during the summer months. Throughout that fateful summer, New York City experienced a polio epidemic that killed 9,000 people and left 27,000 paralyzed.

15 Even though polio was not a new disease, medical experts around the turn of the century were still uncertain about how to prevent it. While it is difficult to determine polio’s first appearance in history, various accounts of lameness and paralysis suggest that polio

20 can be traced back to early Egypt. It was probably not until 1908, when two Austrian physicians identi- fied the submicroscopic virus, that scientists began to have an accurate understanding of the disease. Until 1908, conditions such as overheating, chilling, and

25 even teething were thought to cause polio’s symptoms. Some scientists and doctors even believed that diseases such as whooping cough and pneumonia were the cause of polio. For many decades, polio research centered on

30 treating symptoms as well as developing a vaccine to prevent polio. There was no known cure for people already infected with polio, so doctors focused on managing the disease’s debilitating effects. Scientists and doctors concentrated on making the polio patient

35 more comfortable and preventing fatalities. During the 1920s, the iron lung became a common device used to assist polio patients in breathing. When using the iron lung, patients would lie in a metal, human-sized tank for long periods of time. Sometimes, polio patients

40 would have to continue this treatment their entire lives. Serum therapy was also attempted. During this type of treatment, polio victims would receive doses of serum extracted from polio-recovered monkeys, humans, and even horses. After nearly 20 years of research and trials,

45 serum therapy was finally abandoned and deemed unsuccessful. In the medical field, other debates occurred regarding the proper treatment of polio patients. Initially, it was thought that diseased limbs should be

50 immobilized and even placed in casts. In addition, polio patients were prescribed complete bed rest. However, other theories suggested that paralyzed arms and legs should be wrapped in hot compresses and exercised regularly to prevent muscular atrophy. This

55 latter approach soon became typical protocol because it seemed to relieve some pain and discomfort. During World War II, the effort to cure and prevent polio in the United States was stalled because medical researchers became more involved with military issues

60 and diseases overseas. However, at the end of the War, as numerous troops returned home and polio epidemics once again increased, attention was turned back to this dreaded disease. Finally, a breakthrough occurred during the early 1950s when a medical researcher named

65 Jonas Salk developed an effective vaccine using the tissue culture method. Salk discovered that injecting elements of the dead polio virus into healthy patients was effective, because vaccinated patients would build antibodies against the dead virus. These acquired

70 antibodies prevented any future infection. Later, another medical researcher named Albert Sabin developed an even easier method of distributing the vaccine. Sabin’s vaccine became known as the oral polio vaccine. This innovation eliminated the use of

75 needles; the vaccine was administered by mouth. Children had no difficulty tolerating the vaccine because it was infiltrated into a sugar cube. By 1955, the Salk vaccination trials were deemed successful. The government quickly established a program to administer

80 vaccines to everyone in the country. By the early 1960s, the oral Sabin vaccine replaced the Salk injections. The Sabin vaccine was a live, attenuated virus that provided longer-lasting effects. By 1964, only 121 cases of polio were reported. This was a dramatic decrease from the

85 58,000 cases reported in 1952. While the scourge of polio is well under control in the United States, it is still a dangerous disease worldwide. Polio is especially a threat in more remote and undeveloped countries. In addition, 500,000 Americans

90 continue to live with the effects of childhood polio infections that began decades ago.