Jonas Salk and the Polio Vaccine Essay example

He also focused on the work done by Isabel Morgan and her contributions to develop the polio vaccine and achieved success about the creation of a killed virus vaccine which worked on monkeys, but she decided to take care of her family rather than developing the vaccine further. David M Oshinsky author of Polio An American story believes and also stated that Morgan could have beaten Salk’s if she continued her research she was two years advanced when compared to the Salk’s vaccine.

Paralytic poliomyelitis, "polio", held a reign of terror over this nation for decades. But unless you were born before 1955, polio may seem to be just another ephemeral disease that has been nonexistent for years. Those born before 1955 remember having a great fear of this horrible disease which crippled thousands of once active, healthy children. This disease had no cure and no identified causes, which made it all the more terrifying. People did everything that they had done in the past to prevent the spread of disease, such as quarantining areas, but these tactics never seemed to work. Polio could not be contained. Many people did not have the money to care for a family member with polio. This was one of the

In addition to health-related advances, such as the artificial heart valve, DNA structure decay, penicillin, and antibiotics. As well, we can not forget the start of the fight with cancer by the memorable world’s first cancer treatment with Cobalt-60 radiation. Although, new surgical procedures were introduced like the first successful kidney transplant and immunizations like typhoid, smallpox, tetanus, and polio vaccines. Polio epidemics had been occurring in the United States since 1916 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The viral disease struck even important figures as President Franklin Roosevelt that forced him to use a wheelchair and wear steel braces on his legs privately. “In the 1940s and 1950s, widespread polio epidemics terrorized the nation. Finally, research scientist Jonas Salk developed an injectable vaccine to prevent polio. In 1955 the vaccine became available to the general public. American scientist Albert Sabin then developed an oral vaccine for polio. Safer and more convenient than Salk’s injection vaccine, the Sabin vaccine became the most common method for preventing the disease. The threat of polio nearly disappeared and many more diseases no longer affected the American people” (Appleby, Joyce 2004). Therefore, the treatments and cures of several epidemics and diseases were an important factor that caused the Baby Boom due to the decrease in the children’s mortality rates and their possibility to reach adult

This theory cannot be confirmed nor refuted due to the fact that SIV screenings for the polio vaccine were not available until 1985 more than 25 years after the beginning of the mass

Polymyelitis, otherwise known as polio, was one of the most feared diseases of the early to mid twentieth century. This disease either killed or it paralyzed its’ victims. This affected America in such a terrible way by killing or paralyzing thousands of them within the beginning of the twentieth century alone, scaring most other Americans and putting up a red flag for most health organizations. President Roosevelt, however, conceived the idea of initiating the charity that would later

Poliomyelitis was a highly infectious disease that spread through many Americans in the early 20th century. As a matter of fact, over 3,000 Americans died of the disease each year. Families were overwhelmingly desperate for doctors to find a cure. When one suffered from polio, they generally experienced painful symptoms which included not only fatigue and muscle weakness, but even death. Therefore, when the polio vaccine was introduced by scientist Jonas Salk in 1953, it greatly contributed to Americans in numerous positive ways. Environmentally, the vaccine saved countless young American lives affected by the disease thus decreasing American mortality rates. Socially, the polio vaccine convenienced families who were either directly afflicted

He knew that Polio caused paralysis, and invaded the nervous system. As a result, he wanted to end the greatest epidemic in America at that time. As he began researching, the president of the March of Dimes Foundation, Basal O’Connor, wanted to help Salk create the Polio vaccination. His goal was to fund Salk to find a cure against Paralytic Poliomyelitis, or Polio. Jonas devoted the next 8 years of his life working to develop the vaccine. He finally was able to create the vaccine, using formaldehyde, or a chemical compound. Salk used the killed Polio virus to immunize without being infected, or becoming infected after the injection. Soon after the vaccine was created, they began to test it on monkeys; and then they tested it on children who already had Polio at the Watson Institute. After that trial was done, the testing spread to volunteers who wanted the vaccine; this included Jonas, his wife, and his family. By 1954, national testing began on children between the ages of 6-9. On April 12, 1955, they were able to conclude that the vaccine was safe and effective. Salk became known as a miracle worker, although he remained selfless. Jonas wanted no major payment, or recognition for the creation of the vaccine. In fact, he credited that the vaccine creation was accomplished due to the help of John Enders, a Harvard researcher. Enders was the man

Poliomyelitis (polio) is a disease that attacks the nervous tissue in the spinal cord and the brain stem resulting in paralysis (Document One). Polio is caused by the poliovirus, but it is unknown how this virus is acquired. The virus enters the digestive tract and stays in the intestines for up to eight weeks, and then attacks the lymphatic system, the blood stream and eventually travels to the brain and spine (Document Four). Once it is infected in one’s body, the disease is highly contagious and can be spread through contact of saliva, food, germs, or feces (Document Two). “The poliovirus causes most of its infections in the summer and fall. At one time, summer epidemics of polio were common and greatly feared” (Document Four). This may

When the Polio outbreak was thriving in 1953, Jonas Salk wasn’t just lying around. He was tiredly working on the improvement of the Polio vaccine (Fact Check). The previous vaccine was unreliable and unaffective. It led some patients to be infected with Polio and die

With a substantial amount of preventive healthcare advancements behind them, the American medical community turned its attention to the deadly polio virus plaguing America. From 1937 to 1952, known cases of Americans contracting polio skyrocketed from ten thousand to a staggering figure of roughly fifty-seven thousand cases. Of those cases within that time period, approximately one thousand five hundred deaths as a result of polio were recorded. In the year 1953, The National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis provided the scientist Dr. Jonas Salk with the tools necessary to research, and develop a working vaccine to combat the devastating polio disease. After much trial and error, Dr. Salk was finally able to create what he felt was a successful polio vaccination, and proceeded to conduct a field test. After resounding success, manufacturing instructions for the Salk vaccine were sent to a series of scientific laboratories for immediate production and administration to American children. The disaster that occurred next will forever be known through American medical history as the Cutter Incident (named so after one of the labs that administered the polio vaccine). This medical crisis sent shockwaves throughout America and the medical community, and numerous lawsuits were filed against Cutter Laboratories, resulting in fewer and fewer labs willing to accept contract work in developing vaccines.

Roosevelt became president with infantile paralysis (polio), which was diagnosed in 1921, and the public found out.9 Having the American people's president seem weakened by such a disease but push on through expectations showed that little to nothing was going to get in his way and stop him.10 Including FDR's case, close to 25% of those age 21 and older had paralytic cases by the early 1950s.11 Before the vaccine, there was a peak of about 50,000 cases of polio in 1953.12 Concern of the people was also around it's highest point due to the increasing risk of the horrid disease most feared at this time. Hopes for a solution were still going strong. Friends, family, and even strangers kept prayers for those in need. Anything that could be done was done until the vaccine was established. There were even several hundred thousand children placed in a control study and out of the 749,000, only 33 from the vaccinated group developed paralytic polio.13 In addition to this trial and other performed, and conclusion was drawn stating that the vaccine was 80-90% effective against the paralytic branch of polio.14 Chances for a new beginning were showing up all over with this vaccine, even if it only helped those who haven't been diagnosed

When Polio hit New York City the people were desperate for anything that would save their children’s live. When Jonas Salk came out with the vaccine the people were relief that there is a chance to protect their children from Polio. Little do they know that even with the ultimate goal of fighting the vaccine the people taking part in it had other ideas. Salk wanted to be the man that everyone looked up to because he had developed a vaccine that safe lives of thousands. The foundation that Salk worked under would show that the money that the government put in didn’t go too wasted. For the federal government by helping finding a vaccine they can say that they are there to protect the people and that the people would not have found the vaccination if it wasn’t for the government. Although the vaccine hadn’t proven to work the foundation decided that they are going to put $9 million more into the study. The press then took it as the vaccination is working and that no one would put $9 million in for just a vaccination trails and announce it to the people. Thomas Francis was Salk’s advisor at the time and he was asked to write a review about Salk work and he began his speech by saying that the vaccine is “safe, effective, and potent”. During his speech he also said other things to warn the people about the vaccine, but the people never listened because they have already heard what they want. The vaccine was given and the people had high hopes for it, but the vaccine didn’t work

Most notably, Jonas Edward Salk was known for his work in the field of medicine, specifically the polio vaccine, his medical research institution, and the institution’s fight against AIDS. Salk was working with Thomas Francis Jr. at New York University College of Medicine, where they were developing a killed-virus vaccine (Britannica 1). A killed-virus or inactivated vaccine is an

Dean William McEllroy talked Salk into joining the university full-time. Though the school's research budget was a grant from the American Society for the Study of High Blood Pressure in the amount of $1,800, he saw the opportunity to do two things. One was to continue the work he was doing on influenza, second was to begin working with the polio virus. A few months after arriving in Pittsburgh, Salk was visited by the director of research at the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis. The director asked Salk if he would be willing to participate in a polio typing program. "I had no experience working with polio, but it provided me with an opportunity. . ." Salk said in an interview. This gave Salk a chance to get funding, equipment, a laboratory facility, and to hire a staff to work for and with him.

Jonas salk invented the IPV vaccine. He was born October 28, 1914 to Russian parents. His parents had no education but wanted him to be successful so they encouraged him to work hard. “In 1939 he received a Medical Degree from New York University College of Medicine. In 1942 he joined one of his professors at the University of Michigan School of Public Health” (Petersen, Jennifer B). Jonas and his professor developed vaccine for influenza, which was Salk’s first invention. Then he traveled to Pittsburgh and became a Professor. There, he also became head of the virus research lab. He worked on a vaccine there. He used the killed virus to prevent people from contracting it. On July 2, 1952 he vaccinated 42 children who did not have polio and his trials succeeded. On April 12, 1955 Salk vaccinate 1.8 million children and right after he announced that his trial were effective and that the vaccine works (Petersen, Jennifer B).