Late onset polio sequelae: Disabilities and handicaps in a population-based cohort of the 1956 poliomyelitis outbreak in The Netherlands

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of new neuromuscular symptoms, disabilities, and handicaps in a group of polio survivors.

Design: A self-constructed health questionnaire about neuromuscular complaints and disability and handicap levels during the stable period after recovery from polio and at present.

Subjects: Three hundred fifty subjects, derived from the 1,784 polio cases registered during the 1956 polio outbreak in The Netherlands.

Results: Respondents totaled 260 (74%), 27 of whom denied or did not recall having had paralytic poliomyelitis. The remaining 233 subjects comprised the study group (mean age, 44yrs; range, 39 to 77; SD = 6.3). Frequency of all neuromuscular complaints at present time was significantly higher than that during the stable period after polio (range in p of .001 to .004). Fifty-eight percent of cases reported an increase in muscle weakness in comparison with muscle condition during the stable period. Fifty-six percent reported an increase in disabilities, mainly a restriction in gait functions. Fifty-three percent reported increased handicaps with regard to occupation and social integration, and there was an increased need for adaptive measures and devices.

Conclusion: Nearly 60% of a sample of Dutch survivors of the 1956 polio outbreak experience late onset polio sequelae, resulting in increased severity of disabilities and handicaps. (C) 1999 by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.