PPS, Stress and Dementia
Original Post: This question is for a friend who is experiencing rapid post-polio changes since his wife died a few months ago. Is there any evidence of a relationship between having had polio and increased risk of dementia? I know he is frightened. He has a lot of pain, increasing fatigue and weakness and the brain fog that we are all familiar with.
Dr. Bruno’s Response: Since stress is the second leading cause of PPS symptoms after physical overexertion, the stress of losing one's wife may very likely be the culprit here.
Not only is there no relationship between polio and dementia, one survey of college graduates with and without polio found that polio survivors are significantly less likely to develop dementia. Why? Because the focus on chromosome 19 that produces the poliovirus receptor can alternatively produce one of the proteins that is thought to be related to Alzheimer's. Which means you can have a genome that produces the poliovirus receptor or the Alzheimer's protein. You can't have both.
Additional Post: I never put two and two together before this. My wife passed away three years ago. I worked 13 to 15 hours for 10 months afterward; being on my legs most of the time. I then retired and have since developed significant fatigue and leg weakness in my polio-afflicted leg. I never thought that the event of losing my best friend in the whole world could accelerate PPS. I know that stress is very bad.
Dr. Bruno’s Additional Response: Stress isn't just "mental." Another reason to reduce fatigue and stress when we can is because Word Finding and attention lapses are symptoms of PPS. These articles can help:
I recommend you go to the Encyclopedia of Polio and PPS and look in the Index under the topics: “Word Find” “Fatigue” and “Brain Fatigue” for more articles.