Physical Therapy: A Reminder
For those being pushed by a PT to exercise and "feel the burn.“
AUTOPSY OF A POLIO SURVIVOR WITH MUSCLE WEAKNESS
This isn't the first autopsy of a polio survivor with PPS. But it does remind us that:
Progressive muscle weakness means motor neurons are dying;
The original poliovirus attack killed motor neurons not only in the spinal cord area that controlled this man's the left leg but also caused "silent damage" THROUGHOUT THE SPINAL CORD, silent in that the patient had no muscle weakness in the right leg or his arms after polio but did have arm and leg muscle weakness beginning at age 58;
Neuron death caused glial scars in the spinal cord, the same type of scar our MRI studies found in fatigued polio survivors' brain activating systems;
NONE of the markers for ALS were found.
Conserve to Preserve. The neurons you save will be your own!
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An Autopsy Case Of Progressive Generalized Muscle Atrophy Over 14 Years Due To Post-polio Syndrome.
Oki R, et al. Rinsho Shinkeigaku. November, 2015
“We report the case of a 72-year-old man who had contracted acute paralytic poliomyelitis in his childhood. Thereafter, he had suffered from paresis involving the left lower limb with no relapse or progression of the disease.”
“In his 60s he began noticing slowly progressive muscle weakness and atrophy in the upper and lower extremities. At the age of 72, muscle weakness developed rapidly, and he demonstrated shortness of breath on exertion and difficulty swallowing. He died after about 14 years from the onset of muscle weakness symptoms.”
“Autopsy findings demonstrated MOTOR NEURON LOSS and GLIAL SCARS not only in the motor neurons in the anterior horns, which were result of his old poliomyelitis, BUT ALSO THROUGHOUT THE SPINE. NO Bunina bodies, TDP-43 or ubiquitin inclusions, which are seen in ALS, were found.
The pathological findings in the patient are considered to be related to the development of muscle weakness.”
