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Post-polio syndrome (PPS) is a condition that frequently affects survivors of poliomyelitis, a viral infection of the nervous system, after recovery from an initial paralytic attack of the virus. Typically the symptoms appear 20-40 years after the original infection, at an age of 35 to 60. Symptoms include new or increased muscular weakness, pain in the muscles, and fatigue.

Post-polio patients are also often noted to have memory problems, various cognitive difficulties, and an increased sensitivity to anesthetics. Weight gain is also a frequently noted symptom, though it's hard to tell if this is due to the disorder directly or due to the decreased level of physical activity that usually accompanies the disorder. Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.

Fatigue is often the most disabling symptom, as often even slight exertion can produce disabling fatigue and also increase other symptoms.

Diagnosis of post-polio syndrome can be difficult, since the symptoms are hard to separate from the original symptoms of polio and from the normal infirmities of aging. There is no laboratory test for post-polio syndrome, nor is there any other specific diagnostic, so diagnosis is usually a "diagnosis of exclusion" where other possible causes of the symptoms are eliminated.

The precise mechanism that causes post-polio syndrome is unknown.