New Battle Against 1)Post-Polio Sequelae

Broadcast: Mar¹ 16, 2003

 

It takes three months to get an appointment at the Post Polio Institute in Englewood, New Jersey², where patients are evaluated and treated for Post-Polio Sequelae. These polio survivors³ experience overwhelming fatigue⁴, muscle weakness, muscle and joint⁵ pain, and heightened sensitivity to ²⁾anesthesia, and to cold. They also report problems swallowing and breathing.

Institute Director Richard Bruno says the delayed symptoms, 35 to 40 years after a polio attack, are easy to explain, although the condition, he says, has escaped proper ^3）diagnosis⁶ by patients and doctors.

Post Polio Institute surveys reveal the facts. A typical polio infection kills half of the motor neurons in the body, those nerve cells that make the muscles work. "After polio, those remaining damaged neurons [do] on average sixteen times more work than they did originally. And what [that] did was to set these polio survivors up for a fall. PPS over the years is the result of those overworked damaged neurons dying off or failing as a result of what we call overuse, abuse," says Dr. Bruno.

Richard Bruno says the condition gets worse if untreated.

Bruno: "Polio survivors are losing on average seven percent of their motor neurons a year. All you can do is to read a couple of articles on PPS and you will see that this is a physical condition and not a mental condition."
Skirble: "And, not a disease."
Bruno: No, PPS is not a disease. This has nothing to do with the ^4）poliovirus hiding in the spinal⁷ cord and becoming reactivated. This is not a neurological disease. It is a break down of the body's compensatory mechanism⁸. The body was damaged. It recovered as best it could. It was overused and now that overuse is causing those damaged overworked neurons to fail."

It took Angene Anthony 22 years to find out what was wrong with her. That was in part because she didn't know she had polio as a child. All she remembers is an illness with a high fever, temporary paralysis⁹, but nothing diagnosed as polio.

As she got older the fatigue, muscle soreness, eating and sleeping problems got worse. It remained a mystery even to her doctors. Angene Anthony was 48, the mother of two grown daughters, at the peak of her career as a trainer for a weight loss program when she finally discovered the truth. "I was in total shock finding out I had polio, and I think that was just as devastating¹⁰ as the illness itself, mentally, just recognizing the fact firstly that I had polio and then secondly¹¹, I had Post-Polio," she says. "What happened [to me?]"

Her diagnosis came from the Post Polio Institute. ^5）Therapists there advised her to conserve¹² energy. She began to use a wheel chair, take frequent naps, eat a higher protein diet, and as she describes it, totally rearrange her life. "When I began to realize that it is not what I had [post polio] that was important, but how I was going to cope with it, that is when my life began to change," she says.

Angene Anthony now wears a brace¹³, walks with canes¹⁴ or rides in a motorized scooter painted the same bright red as her nails. Activity logs tell her what triggers fatigue and other post-polio ^6）symptoms. But, the most dangerous part of treatment, she says, is when she starts feeling better.

Anthony:"Then you call Dr. Bruno and say, 'I am going out to see the world,' and you do. And, he says, 'You better be careful because that is when you hit that brick wall again.' And, you'll hit [it]. And if you think you won't, you are deceiving yourself. The fact is that unless you learn to deal with it and cope with it, both mentally and physically¹⁵ you will not get anywhere [in your therapy].
Skirble: "What kind of advice would you give to someone who may be listening to this broadcast, who may share your symptoms?"
Anthony: "Listen to your body. It speaks to you clearly. And when it speaks to you and it hurts, make it rest because with Post-Polio there is no other way to do it. You've got to take care of it or it won't work anymore. And, I think the most important thing I would say to them is to pace yourself. It can be a better life if you so choose to pace yourself and rest. Those are the two most important things. And, believe in yourself that this will be manageable." While following her own advice has not been easy, Angene Anthony says she has learned to live with Post Polio Sequelae and grown emotionally in the process. She says her passion to share her story has given new meaning to her life. She has created the National Scooter Shopping Initiative, a lobby group that calls on shopping centers and malls to provide motorized scooters for disabled customers. She says she hopes speaking out for those disabled by post-polio will raise awareness¹⁶ in the medical community about the condition and reduce the pain for those who suffer from it.

I'm Rosanne Skirble.

 

1)    Post-Polio Sequelae 脊髓灰质炎，小儿麻痹后遗症

2)    anesthesia[7Anis5Wi:zjE]n. 麻木，麻痹

3)    diagnosis[7daiE^5nEusis]n.诊断

4)    poliovirus[7pEuliEu5vaiErEs]n.[微]脊髓灰质炎病毒

5)    therapist[5WerEpIst]n.临床医学家

6)    symptom[5simptEm]n.[医]症状, 征兆

1 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

2 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

3 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

4 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

5 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

6 diagnosis   

n.诊断，诊断结果，调查分析，判断

参考例句：

• His symptoms gave no obvious pointer to a possible diagnosis.他的症状无法作出明确的诊断。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做一次彻底的调查分析。

7 spinal   

adj.针的，尖刺的，尖刺状突起的；adj.脊骨的，脊髓的

参考例句：

• After three days in Japan,the spinal column becomes extraordinarily flexible.在日本三天，就已经使脊椎骨变得富有弹性了。
• Your spinal column is made up of 24 movable vertebrae.你的脊柱由24个活动的脊椎骨构成。

8 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

9 paralysis   

n.麻痹(症)；瘫痪(症)

参考例句：

• The paralysis affects his right leg and he can only walk with difficulty.他右腿瘫痪步履维艰。
• The paralysis affects his right leg and he can only walk with difficulty.他右腿瘫痪步履维艰。

10 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

11 secondly   

adv.第二，其次

参考例句：

• Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。
• Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

12 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

13 brace   

n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备

参考例句：

• My daughter has to wear a brace on her teeth. 我的女儿得戴牙套以矫正牙齿。
• You had better brace yourself for some bad news. 有些坏消息,你最好做好准备。

14 canes   

n.（某些植物，如竹或甘蔗的）茎( cane的名词复数 )；（用于制作家具等的）竹竿；竹杖

参考例句：

• Sugar canes eat sweet. 甘蔗吃起来很甜。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I saw several sugar canes, but wild, and for cultivation, imperfect. 我还看到一些甘蔗，因为是野生的，未经人工栽培，所以不太好吃。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学

15 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

16 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。