ACUTE POLIOMYELITIS

<h3>I. Diagnosis</h3> So far as we know, paralysis is the only undesirable result of acute poliomyelitis. Consequently, therapeutic effort should be directed to prevent this accident. It is becoming increasingly evident that most patients with the disease never develop muscular weakness, and, indeed, that paralysis is an accidental and incidental occurrence in the latter part of the course of an acute systemic infection. No treatment, save that to make a febrile patient comfortable, is needed, therefore, in many cases. But because the chance of crippling exists, we must be prepared to use promptly any safe methods which will prevent the establishment of damaging lesions in the cerebrospinal nerve tissue. In order to discuss intelligently, however, the use and value of any procedure designed for this purpose, it is necessary first to study in detail the clinical course of the disease in man. Furthermore, it is obvious that to make statistical