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VERIFY | Answering claims and questions about polio

WCNC Charlotte's Verify team provides the facts about polio.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Polio is back in the headlines this week after the first case in the U.S. in nearly a decade was reported in New York.

Just days ago, the New York State Department of Health announced it had detected polio in wastewater in New York City.

RELATED: Polio detected in NYC's sewage, suggesting virus circulating

While many medical experts have been adamant a majority of Americans are not at risk of contracting the virus, there are still claims and questions about polio.

OUR SOURCES

THE QUESTION

How does polio spread?

THE ANSWER

WHO and CDC experts said polio primarily spreads through fecal or oral contact, such as when someone doesn't wash their hands after going to the bathroom or changing a baby's diaper.

THE QUESTION

Is the oral polio vaccine given out decades ago still effective?

THE ANSWER

Many older Americans got the polio vaccine during a mass vaccination campaign in the 1950s. Some kids received the oral vaccine in a sugar cube. 

Evers said that past vaccine remains effective at preventing the spread of polio.

"Yes, it is," Evers said. "But it is no longer given out because of the small risk in the population spreading that attenuated virus. But it is true, it's an effective form of being protected against polio."

A quick vocabulary check: An "attenuated vaccine" means the vaccine contains a weakened form of a virus to help elicit a strong and long-lasting immune response.

THE QUESTION

Does the U.S. still use the oral polio vaccine?

THE ANSWER

The answer is no, according to Evers and the CDC.

"There was a very, very low risk, like one in 2.4 million, that the oral polio vaccine could spread and cause polio," Evers said. "So in 2000, it became routine in this country to use the inactivated polio vaccine, which is given as an injection in the arm or leg, and there is no risk of that sort of vaccine causing polio in the community."

Some countries still administer the polio vaccine orally because it's often easier and cheaper.

VERIFY is dedicated to helping the public distinguish between true and false information. The VERIFY team, with help from questions submitted by the audience, tracks the spread of stories or claims that need clarification or correction. Have something you want VERIFIED? Text us at 704-329-3600 or visit /verify.

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