Serologic Epidemiology of Poliomyelitis

Abstract

This paper shows what may be learned from studies in serologic epidemiology. Investigation on a continuing basis of levels of immunological maturation of certain communities, or of defined segments within a single community, throws light on the endemiology of a disease, i.e., as the infection exists year in, year out, within the people. Studies in poliomyelitis are described in an isolated Eskimo population in Northern Alaska; in subtropical, crowded Cairo, Egypt; and in 2 socioeconomic groups in Charleston, West Virginia. Long-lasting neutralizing antibodies and short-lived complement-fixing antibodies were compared in different populations.