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ANN ARBOR,
MI - Polio, a disease that has the potential to paralyze and
even kill its victims, was once prevalent in the United States before
a vaccine was made available to the public in 1955. And with no
new cases of polio reported in the U.S. for more than 20 years,
the only reminder of this past epidemic are its survivors - a group,
like many others with disabilities, that is now living longer than
ever before.
But despite
the growth in this segment of this population, very little is still
known about how the effects of aging, and especially menopause,
impacts polio survivors' quality of life.
Now researchers
in the University of Michigan
Health System's Rehabilitation Psychology and Neuropsychology
Division of the Department
of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation will take a closer look
at the menopausal experience of women polio survivors, including
an extensive study of aspects of both male and female survivors'
current health.
The study,
"Women with Polio: Menopause, Late Effects, Quality of Life,
and Psychological Well Being," is funded through a $25,000
award from the Gazette International Networking Institute's (GINI)
Post-Poliomyelitis Research Grant.
As its name
suggests, the study will explore the relationships between menopause,
late effects, hormone replacement therapy risks, life satisfaction
and emotional distress in the overall quality of survivors' lives.
Past evidence
has found that women with a history of polio may have a greater
prevalence of late effect symptoms like pain, fatigue and weakness
after the age of 50. However, it is not known whether or not those
symptoms are influenced by menopause, says Claire Z. Kalpakjian,
Ph.D., project manager and co-investigator.
"For women
survivors, developing pain and fatigue about 30 years after having
polio typically coincides with menopause," she explains. "What
we hope to uncover is the influence menopause, if there even is
one, has on polio survivors' pre-existing conditions and whether
pre-existing conditions such as fatigue and pain make the menopausal
transition harder for some women."
To find out
more, a group of 800 to 900 women with a history of polio, the majority
of whom will be middle-aged, will be recruited from the International
Polio Network. The Network will also help recruit 800 to 900
men from the same age group with a history of polio. The balance
of men and women subjects in this study is important since most
polio studies tend to report on a greater number of females. Both
groups will complete
a mailed survey questionnaire.
For the menopause
component of the study, the men will serve as the control group
to allow researchers to compare the differences between men and
women. This will show the impact, if any, that menopause has on
female polio survivors.
This comparison
between genders will also allow for an in-depth exploration of differences
between men and women in terms of late effects of polio and other
health problems they may be experiencing.
"As we
learn and understand more about how men and women polio survivors
differ as they age, we'll be able to help identify the best treatment
and health management approaches for both groups," says Kalpakjian.
Other members
of the U-M research team include: Principal investigator Denise
G. Tate, Ph.D., professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation;
co-investigator Elisabeth H. Quint, M.D., associate professor, U-M
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; and polio survivor and
project consultant Sunny Roller, MS, Department of Physical Medicine
and Rehabilitation.
To learn more
about polio research and treatment at the U-M Health System, call
(734) 936 7052.
Facts about
polio
- Polio is
an orally contracted virus. Some cases do not cause serious illness,
however other cases may lead to paralysis or even death.
- In 1916,
a polio epidemic began in the United States that killed 6,000
Americans and paralyzed 27,000 others annually. By the early 1950s,
more than 20,000 cases of polio were reported each year. Once
the polio vaccine became available to the public in 1955, the
cases of the disease began to drop. By 1979, there were only 10
cases reported in the country. However, the disease is still common
in other parts of the world.
- Today, polio
survivors are one of the largest disabilities groups in the U.S.
A 1987 survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics
found that 1.6 million Americans had contracted and survived polio.
About 640,000 of those cases resulted in paralytic polio, which
increased the risk for post-polio syndrome.
- Post-polio
syndrome occurs about 10 to 40 years after the initial onset of
polio. It can cause fatigue, muscle weakness, joint pain and muscular
atrophy. The severity of post-polio depends on how serious the
polio attack was initially.
Written
by Krista Hopson
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