Laurier researchers comparing polio epidemic to COVID-19 pandemic
A team of student researchers at Wilfrid Laurier University's Brantford campus have completed a study comparing polio to COVID-19.
Polio, a viral disease, sparked an epidemic worldwide.
“Really big outbreaks in the 30s, 40s and 50s, and it particularly targeted young people whose immune systems were not so strong,” said Tarah Brookfield, associate professor of History and Children and Youth Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University.
The research group interviewed 10 residents in Brantford ranging in age from 72 to 93.
Brantford resident Andrew Harris is one of the people who were involved in the study.
He was around six years old in the 1950s and living in Manitoba when a classmate of his didn’t come back to school for the better part of a year after being diagnosed with polio.
“When he came back, he had a severe limp as a result of the polio because of the paralysis,” Harris said.
Researchers said there are a lot of similarities between the two diseases.
“Similar to COVID, polio was asymptomatic. So approximately 70 per cent of the people who got it didn’t know they had it,” said Brookfield.
Harris said he also noticed many similar aspects after living through both crises.
“The fear, the anxiety and the reluctance. There was pushback back then too,” said Harris.
Researchers said there weren’t as many polio cases as there have been COVID-19 cases.
“Cases in the thousands, not the hundreds of thousands,” said Tyler Britz, a research student.
The polio vaccine took a long time to develop as medicine wasn't as advanced 70 years ago.
“I was part of the experimental group that got the initial needles. Those three needles, plus a booster,” Harris said, recalling being part of the test trials when he was a young boy.
When the vaccine was developed in the 1950s, many Canadian children were immunized fast.
“All kids in Brant and Brant County, they all got vaccinated on the same day,” said Britz.
Another similar aspect was the public health tactics used in both cases. Those with polio were forced to quarantine. Residents were also asked to do their due diligence and be safe around others.
“Don’t touch water, don’t drink water out of the fountain at school, don’t go in the swimming pool,” Harris said.
While fear and uncertainty plagued both the polio epidemic and COVID-19 pandemic, Harris said he is optimistic.
“It’s on its way out,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.