Polio Voices: An Oral History from the American Polio Epidemics and Worldwide Eradication Efforts (The Praeger Series on Contemporary Health and Living)

Incorporating many rare photographs from the family albums of survivors who tell their stories, Harvard professor Julie Silver, M.D., and historian Daniel Wilson help readers understand the sheer terror that gripped parents of young children every spring and summer during the first half of the 20th century as polio epidemics ran rampant. Interviewed as part of the Polio Oral History Project directed by Silver and funded by Harvard, foundations, and private donors, the people featured in this book describe what is arguably the most feared scourge of modern times. Testimonies are included from people who worked in polio wards, as well as from those involved in worldwide eradication efforts. The book also addresses the emergence of the polio and disability rights movement, the challenges of post-polio syndrome, and the state of polio research and developments today. And it explores the concern that polio could return in an even more vicious form as a result of bioterrorism. "Incorporating many rare photographs - most never made public before - from the family albums of survivors who tell their stories in this volume, Harvard professor Julie Silver, M.D., and historian Daniel Wilson help readers understand the sheer terror that gripped parents of young children every spring and summer during the first half of the 20th century as polio epidemics ran rampant. Interviewed as part of the Polio Oral History Project directed by Silver and funded by Harvard, foundations, and private donors, the people featured in this book describe what is arguably the most feared scourge of modern times." "This work will be of interest to anyone intrigued by health and medical history; infectious disease and other epidemics; the psychological effects of disease on children, adults, and communities; politics in the Roosevelt era; and bioterrorism."--BOOK JACKET Contents......Page 8 Series Foreword by Julie Silver......Page 10 Acknowledgments......Page 12 Introduction......Page 14 1. The Epidemic Years......Page 28 2. Acute and Convalescent Polio......Page 48 3. Polio’s Impact on the Family......Page 72 4. Living with Polio......Page 88 5. The Legacy of Volunteerism......Page 108 6. The Impact on Disability Rights in America......Page 124 7. Post-Polio Syndrome......Page 136 8. Polio Today and Its Effect on Advances in Medicine......Page 152 Notes......Page 170 Index......Page 180 The Epidemic Years -- Acute And Convalescent Polio -- Polio's Impact On The Family -- Living With Polio -- The Legacy Of Volunteerism -- The Impact On Disability Rights In America -- Post-polio Syndrome -- Polio Today And Its Effect On Advances In Medicine. Julie Silver And Daniel Wilson. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [157]-166) And Index.