Long after the polio vaccine stemmed the disease that once infected thousands of people, a handful of U.S. polio survivors still rely on decades-old iron lung machines to stay alive—and must overcome increasing obstacles to maintain the devices.
Iron lungs were a staple in hospitals in the 1940s and 1950s, when poliomyelitis—a highly contagious disease that can paralyze a person’s arms, legs, and respiratory muscles—was rampant in the United States, Brown writes. In 1952 alone, polio paralyzed 21,269 people and killed an additional 3,145. Children under five are particularly vulnerable to the disease.
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Paul Alexander, who is nearly completely paralyzed, brought his iron lung to law school and became a trial lawyer. Now, he is in the iron lung almost constantly, Brown reports.
“Once you live in an iron lung forever, it seems like, it becomes such a part of your mentality,” Alexander said. “Like if somebody touches the iron lung—touches it—I can feel that.”
Richard Bruno, a clinical psychophysiologist, and director of the International Centre for Polio Education, said, “Parents today have no idea what polio was like, so it’s hard to convince somebody that lives are at risk if they don’t vaccinate.” Bruno noted that if an individual with polio were to visit an area where many children aren’t vaccinated against the disease, “then we could be talking about the definition of a polio epidemic.”
Alexander said, “Now, my worst thought is that polio’s come back.” He added, “If there’s so many people who’ve not been—children, especially—have not been vaccinated… I don’t even want to think about it.”
Lillard separately said, “I would just do anything to prevent somebody from having to go through what I have.”
For polio survivors who have difficulty breathing on their own—or who can’t breathe at all—an iron lung is a critical survival tool. It’s essentially a large metal tube that encases a person’s body from the neck down and works by creating negative pressure that induces a patient’s lungs to take in oxygen.
In 1955, the polio vaccine became available in the United States and largely ended the spread of the disease. By 1961, there were just 161 reported cases of polio in the United States. In 2016, there were just 37 cases reported worldwide, all in Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan.
Though the polio vaccine largely eliminated the disease and the need for iron lungs, a handful of polio survivors are still dependent on the aging, difficult-to-maintain machines for survival. Post-Polio Health International in 2013 estimated that six to eight iron lung users remained in the United States.
Martha Lillard, contracted polio in 1953 when she was five years old. Today, she sleeps inside the machine every night. “I would just do anything to prevent somebody from having to go through what I have”, she said.
Mona Randolph, at age 20. She initially used an iron lung for about a year before weaning herself off with rehabilitation, but she had to resume using the machine two decades later after several bronchial infections. She spends six nights a week in the machine. Paul Alexander, contracted polio in 1952, when he was six years old.
Alexander, who is nearly completely paralyzed, brought his iron lung to law school and became a trial lawyer. Now, he is in the iron lung almost constantly. As he mentioned: ” Now, my worst thought is that polio’s come back.” He added, “If there’s so many people who’ve not been—children, especially—have not been vaccinated… I don’t even want to think about it.”
For iron lung users, keeping the machines functioning is truly a matter of life and death. One polio survivor who relied on an iron lung died in 2008 when she lost power during a storm.
Because of this, and the development of modern ventilators, and the widespread use of tracheal intubation and tracheotomy, the iron lung has mostly disappeared from modern medicine. Barlow Respiratory Hospital keeps one iron lung on display as a reminder of those days.
Relevant articles:
– Inside the lives of America’s last iron lung patients – Advisory
– From Iron Lungs to Modern Ventilators – A Look at our History
– Polio – Our World in Data
Seems this article was written 6 or 7 years ago. Not very Trendy is it.