Medical Advances as a Result of Polio -”The Autumn Ghost”

“How the Battle Against a Polio Epidemic Revolutionized Modern Medical Care”

Dr. Wunsch is a critical care physician and researcher at Sunnybrook Health Science Centre and a professor of anesthesiology and critical care medicine at the University of Toronto.

This book is “an enlightening and deeply impactful story of this critical moment in medical history.” Pamela Sergey

Image Courtesy of Hannah Wunsch, MD

What can we learn as a result of the polio vaccine? 

• Since 1988 Worldwide:

  • 1.5 million lives have been saved by the polio vaccine.

  • 18 million are able to walk who wouldn’t otherwise.

• Since 1988 In the US:

  • 15 million lives have been saved by mechanical ventilation

An interview with Hannah Wunsch, MD by the Post-Polio Syndrome Advocacy Group 7/2023

"I hope this will help people remember what it was like BEFORE the vaccine. It was an eye-opener for me to see how much advocacy comes from polio survivors.“  Hannah Wunsch, MD

“This book is a remarkable medical story that we haven’t heard before, reconstructing the polio crisis and the heroic efforts to keep patient’s alive.”

The Autumn Ghost